Women protest demanding the release of abducted secondary school girls from the remote village of Chibok, in Lagos
Women rest after a protest demanding the release of abducted secondary school girls from the remote village of Chibok, in Lagos May 5, 2014. The Islamist militant group Boko Haram claimed responsibility on Monday for the abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls during a raid in the village of Chibok in northeast Nigeria last month, the French news agency AFP reported, citing a video it had obtained. Boko Haram on April 14 stormed an all-girl secondary school in Chibok, in Borno state, then packed the teenagers, who had been taking exams, onto trucks and disappeared into a remote area along the border with Cameroon. Reuters

A majority of female sexual assault victims in Canada lack confidence in the criminal justice system and are refraining from reporting their woes to police. This disclosure in a study has warranted fresh look at augmenting support services to equip women with the strength and confidence, said a new federal study. Many women cited their lack of faith in the justice system as the sole reason for not reporting the sexual attacks to the police.

Telling Tales

The study provides insight into the experiences of many women. Allegations of sexual assault levelled against former CBC Radio host Jian Ghomeshi and harassment charges on Liberal MPs, have suddenly brought the debate on sexual impropriety and violence directed at women to the centre stage, reported Global News.

The study, conducted by government researcher Melissa Lindsay in conjuction with the Justice Department's research and statistics division has documented 114 interviews with survivors who were subjected to sexual violence in many unnamed cities. The research division also worked with sexual assault rehabilitation centres to develop a broad questionnaire and also added many participants.

Complaints Avoided

The study said, only one-third of the victims, reported sexual violence to the police. Among the reasons cited for not reporting included shame and embarrassment, fear of the offender and lack of confidence in the justice system. Nearly 53 percent of participants showed skewed confidence in the police. Two-thirds of them stated they were not confident about the court process and in efficiacy of the criminal justice system. Though the Conservatives have introduced a legislation to create a federal bill of rights for sex assualt victims, in terms of providing more information and protection during the trials and sentencing, many rights advocates said the legislation is short of inspiring confidence to help people in going to court, as they felt their rights were not being respected.

Calgary Assault

Meanwhile, Police arrested two brothers as offenders in connection with a sexual assault on a 17-year-old girl in Calgary. According to Sgt. Melanie Oncescu, the teen was assaulted first in a back alley and then at a house on Last Friday. The police framed charges of abduction, forcible confinement, sexual assault on the accused. The 17-year-old was approached by two men while waiting for a bus around 11:30 pm. They then dragged the girl into an alley and sexually assaulted her. The teenager was forcibly walked from the bus stop at Taradale Drive and Tara Cove Road to a neighbouring house and held overnight and repeatedly assaulted, reported Cbc News.