Sorcha Eastwood: MP tells Commons of rape threat during Stormont school visit

An MP has told the House of Commons that she was once approached by a member of the public who told her that he wanted to rape her.

Sorcha Eastwood said the incident occurred while she was hosting a group of school children at Stormont in her previous role as a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The Alliance Party MP was speaking during a debate on violence against women and girls.

During Thursday’s debate, Eastwood described herself as a “survivor of abuse”.

She said that she received her first rape threat when she first stood for election in 2017.

Eastwood said that Northern Ireland “is one of the most dangerous places in Europe to be a woman” as she outlined recent femicide statistics.

She added that she was “upset” that no other MPs from Northern Ireland were present for the debate.

Eastwood said that “incel culture” terrifies and disturbs her.

Incel is short for “involuntary celibate”; People who define themselves as incel say they can’t get a sex life despite the fact that they want to be in a relationship.

The men who identify with the community express misogyny and an unfulfilled sense of entitlement to sex that women are withholding from them.

Eastwood said that was “delighted to see the seriousness” of the UK Government’s approach to tackling the issue of violence against woman and and girls and she implored the government to work with the Northern Ireland Executive on the issue.

“I see many women come across the door of my office in Lisburn who have been through years of systemic abuse, failed at every cut and turn by statutory agencies and others who had a duty and did not report,” she said.

“They are left in a position where we have to build up trust with them, not just in terms of their life but the societal and statutory response.”

The elected representative said members need to “address the root causes” of violence against women and girls.

Recalling the incident at Stormont, Eastwood told the Commons: “We would see a lot of school groups coming through the constituency. We previously did a lot of visits to the Parliament Building in Stormont whenever I sat there in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

“During one school visit, a member of the public came up and said that they wanted to rape me.

“There were two people there, and we were just kind of paralysed in response. That was not the right response—not from me, but from the people around—but it is so normalised that that was exactly what people thought. That is not good enough.”

Eastwood added that members of the Northern Ireland Executive are “desperate and anxious to act” in tackling violence against women, but they “cannot do it alone”.

“We need the help of every single member of this house,” she added.

“Human rights are not devolved, and on a technical point, the regulation of social media is certainly not devolved.”

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