Women's Aid has expressed concern at a significant rise in the number of cases of children being victimised or abused as a result of violence in the home. Carl O'Brien, Social Affairs Correspondent
The group said its domestic violence helpline recorded a 29 per cent increase in the number of incidents of child abuse where the perpetrator was directly abusing children as well as their mother.
The nature of abuse documented on its helpline relating to children included an abuser urinating on a child, the kicking of a child in the stomach and the exposure of children to the rape of their mother. In all, the Women's Aid helpline received 12,000 calls last year.
The majority of calls (60 per cent) related to emotional abuse, including threats to kill, and physically aggressive behaviour such as punching holes in walls.
Physical abuse accounted for 25 per cent of calls, with individual cases including being strangled until unconscious, being stripped naked and being beaten with a baseball bat.
Of those who experienced physical abuse, a significant number reported it occurring during pregnancy.
Such abuse reported included being beaten to miscarriage, being forced to stop breastfeeding and being kicked in the stomach following Caesarean section.
Financial abuse accounted for 10 per cent of calls, with cases ranging from being denied access to money to the abuser closing all bank accounts to stop a woman leaving a relationship.
Sexual abuse was cited in 5 per cent of calls, with cases such as being raped at gunpoint and being raped while asleep.
In total, there were 259 rapes recorded.
As well as responding to 12,000 calls on its helpline, Women's Aid said it organised 349 one-to-one support visits and 135 court accompaniments.
Margaret Martin, director of Women's Aid, said the scale of abuse was worrying, in particular abuse directed at children.
"This year, we are particularly concerned at the increase in specific incidents of child abuse, and the nature of the abuse such as violent beatings and urinating on a child," she said.
"The numbers of women who continue to be abused after they have left relationships is extremely worrying, as is the fact that children are abused during access visits. It is vital that child and woman protection are put at the centre of court decisions."
Ms Martin said the fact that a large volume of court accompaniments were repeat visits (70 per cent) highlighted failures of the legal system to adequately protect women and children from domestic violence.
Figures for last year also show that new callers continued to access the service, with almost half of all calls coming from first-time contacts.
One-third of calls came from the greater Dublin area.
"We respond to approximately 12,000 calls every year, which shows domestic violence is still a huge problem within Irish society," she said.
The Women's Aid Helpline is open from 10am to 10pm, seven days a week, at 1800-341900.