Sexual violence during Troubles should not be overlooked in new law, MPs argue

Ulster Unionist Party MP Robin Swann argued victims should be able to request an investigation under the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill, as he pressed the Ggvernment to amend it.

Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant pledged to “work with him” on the issue, but argued the change to the bill would not be necessary.

Speaking at committee stage in the Commons, Mr Swann said his amendment “would allow victims of sexual crimes committed as part of the Troubles who suffered physical or mental harm to request an investigation”.

“We must not allow sexual violence or abuse to become an overlooked part of the history of the Troubles. Nor should victims be left without an effective route to seek answers about what happened,” he added.

The South Antrim MP continued: “This isn’t about party politics. It’s about recognising the experiences of victims, ensuring that sexual violence is properly acknowledged in the historical record, and making certain that the legislation does not leave that behind.

“If parliament has accepted the sexual offences require explicit protection in the context of immunity, it should also give serious consideration to ensuring the victims of those offences are not excluded from the process of seeking truth and accountability.”

Intervening, Sir Chris said: “I think everybody in the House wants to ensure that people are not barred from being able to take these issues forward through the commission.

“It may need to be dealt with so sensitively that the Legacy Commission may not be the place where they want it to be addressed.

“It may be somewhere else that they want it to be addressed, but I’m not sure that his amendment is necessary to be to be able to achieve what he’s trying to achieve.”

Mr Swann then replied: “The reason I’m putting it into the bill is because it’s not there.”

“I do ask [the government] to seriously consider where sexual violence and crime could fit into part of this bill.

“It’s not a wide section of victims, nor will it add multiple cases, but it will bring reassurance to some,” he added.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson had earlier spoken in support of Mr Swann’s amendment.

“We hear the government want to resist the notion that sexual violence and sexual trauma form part of the Troubles, and therefore shouldn’t be able to be considered by the Legacy Commission,” he said.

Intervening, Sir Chris said: “I don’t resist the idea that sexual violence was part of the Troubles, and indeed one of the problems that we had with the previous legacy legislation was that it made it impossible for these to be investigated anywhere.

“What we are making possible is that they will be able to be investigated by the police, and all police forces in the United Kingdom have suitable teams able to deal with the specifics of these kind of incidents.

“And I think it will be inappropriate for the Legacy Commission to take on that piece of work without being able to set up a whole new team specifically to look at that.”

Mr Robinson argued that going to the police is “still an alien concept” for some victims.