New Online Portal Released for Sexual Assault Survivors in Australian State

A woman holds a protest sign calling for action against domestic violence in Hyde Park during the Sydney International Women's Day march in Sydney, Australia, on March 7, 2020. (Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images)

Victims and survivors of sexual assault in New South Wales (NSW) will now be able to report their experience to police online.

NSW Police Force released on Jan. 13 the enhanced new online portal of the Sexual Assault Reporting Option (SARO), which will allow victims of sexual assault to report and provide information without taking part in a formal police report or go through a legal process.

Since 2012, victims and survivors needed to print off and complete a 14-page document before emailing it to the State Crime Command’s Sex Crimes Squad.

The new online portal will now replace this old process, allowing victims to report experiences at their own pace and anonymously.

The system allows victims to upload images and is available in 12 languages including English; making it more accessible and easy for victims.

NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for Police Paul Toole said the new online portal will encourage victims and survivors to come forward with their experiences.

“While we want to stop would-be perpetrators before it’s too late, it’s absolutely critical we take a victim-focussed approach to supporting those involved through the reporting option,” Toole said.

“Through the hard work of those involved in the Sexual Violence Project, NSW Police have been able to identify ways to better support victims through their journey and to also ensure we take all opportunities to reduce offending.”

Supporting Victims With Reporting Cases

With many sexual violence and assault cases being under-reported, the online portal allows victims to take the first step to record their sexual assault without commencing a police investigation straight away.  NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS) reported that although in NSW there are around 2,500 reports of domestic violence every month, this likely represents only 40 percent of actual crime levels due to underreporting.

“While the online portal does not commence a police investigation, it empowers victims of sexual assault to take the first step and record their sexual assault, whether or not they wish at a later date to have the matter investigated,” Toole said.

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NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said this new reporting option will help police understand sexual violence in the community, assist victims, and hold offenders accountable.

“For many victim-survivors, a police investigation and court process are the farthest thing from their mind and often they feel further traumatised through the process,” Webb said.

NSW Police Sex Crimes Squad Commander, Superintendent Jayne Doherty said that the police force is continuing to review and improve its methods and processes around sexual violence.

“While trauma affects individuals in different ways, reporting can be therapeutic for those victims who wish to share their experience and do so online from their own home or a safe location. For some victims, this may be their first disclosure of the sexual assault,” Doherty said.

After taking the step to submit the report, victims can opt-out of further contact with police, or they can choose to be identified and request that police follow up in certain circumstances.

With records of reports in the SARO system, victims can also return at a later day to make more statements when they are ready.

“When you’ve gone through something so traumatic you’re a shell of what you once were so the last thing you want to do is go through a rigorous reporting process,” said abuse survivor Harrison James, reported News.

Sexual Assault Trends on the Rise in NSW

The number of reports made on SARO continues to increase each year, with the monthly average increasing from 64 reports in 2021 to 70 reports in 2022.

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research’s (BOCSAR) NSW Recorded Crime Statistics Quarterly Update September 2022 released on Dec. 12, 2022, shows that police reports of domestic violence assault increased 13.1 percent in the five years to September 2022. Sexual assault increased 25.9 percent over the same period.

The Sexual Violence Reform Priorities paper released in November 2022 by Full Stop Australia, highlights sexual assault as the fastest growing violent crime across Australia.

Reporting recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reports (pdf) that whilst there was a decrease in personal crimes such as homicide, theft, and kidnapping between 1995-2020, sexual assault increased by 110 percent during the 25 years period. 

Support from Rape Survivor Groups

Full Stop Australia’s Director of Clinical and Client Services Tara Hunter supported the initiative and said it was a great step forward in addressing issues experienced when reporting sexual violence.

Full Stop Australia is an organisation and charity that supports people affected by sexual, domestic or family violence.

“We know sexual violence in our community continues to be under-reported and we see the SARO as a tool for victim-survivors to make initial contact with police following an incident of sexual violence, where they are able record the details and return to making a more formal statement if and when they are ready,” Hunter said, report ABC news

“Full Stop Australia supports these improvements to increase the reporting of sexual violence incidents in our community and look forward to continue working to better our justice and support systems for survivors of sexual, domestic and family violence.”

Sexual abuse support organisations Survivors and Mates Support Network (SAMSN) and Stepping Out have been reached for comment.