UH sex crimes going
unreported, study says

Officials are urged to raise
funding for prevention programs

A new study suggests domestic and sexual abuse of University of Hawaii undergraduate women is underreported.

Statistics and prevention A survey of undergraduate women at the University of Hawaii-Manoa taken in fall 2003 found that: » About 11 percent of the respondents experienced partner violence. » About 10 percent reported being stalked. » Nearly 2 percent said they had been raped. » Nearly 10 percent reported experiencing sexual assault. The study by the Manoa Women's Center Program Against Violence to Women recommends the university administration: » Demonstrate institutional commitment to preventing sexual and relationship violence and holding perpetrators accountable. » Implement a systemwide sexual assault policy. » Give campus law enforcement the power to arrest. » Update the UH-Manoa student conduct code.

The Manoa Women's Center Program Against Violence to Women recommends that the university administration take steps to increase education and prevention in dorms and on campus.

A survey taken in fall 2003 found that about 11 percent of the respondents experienced partner violence, about 10 percent reported being stalked, nearly 2 percent said they were raped and nearly 10 percent reported experiencing sexual assault.

Depending on the category, 24 percent to 63 percent of the incidents occurred on campus, but, according to the survey, only 5 percent were reported to police or campus security.

The report, released Monday, comes after a recent series of what police believe are unrelated rapes near the Manoa campus.

The report's author, P. Jayne Bopp, said while publicity around the recent crimes has heightened awareness of the problem, stranger abductions are "the rarest kind of rape, and stranger rapes are more likely to be reported."

Most women will be assaulted by someone they know, Bopp said. "Acquaintance rape, date rape, things that happen behind dormitory doors or at private parties ... that kind of stuff is rarely reported, and it's the bulk of the violence that students are experiencing."

The anonymous survey for the report was distributed in randomly selected undergraduate lecture courses in the fall of 2003 and is based on 435 female respondents.

There were about 7,284 undergraduate women at UH-Manoa in fall 2003.

The results are similar to national surveys on rape and domestic violence on campus.

According to the report, "there are currently no institutionalized programs at any (UH or community college campus) to address issues of sexual and relationship violence, and only two of our 10 campuses have a formal sexual assault policy."

Bopp's report contains several recommendations to reduce violence against women and improve reporting of crimes. One of her main recommendations is to improve funding for prevention and education programs.

She believes more programs should be aimed at men, rather than women.

Most of the effort to prevent rape is targeted at women, Bopp said.

"The onus is on the victims. To me it should not be that way at all. We need to reach the potential and actual perpetrators, and that means men," she said.

UH-Manoa spokesman Jim Manke said Wednesday that Chancellor Peter Englert has received the report but has been out of town and has not yet had a chance to review it.

University spokeswoman Carolyn Tanaka said, "This is an important issue for the university, and we agree that there is a need for institutional commitment in this area."

Tanaka said UH Interim President David McClain agrees with the general tone and direction of the recommendations, but "we would obviously have to sit down and take a look at each recommendation to see if they are practical."