A woman conceived by rape who campaigned for a change in the law to recognize people like her as victims is celebrating after achieving her goal.
The Government has announced that the Victims Bill will expand the definition of “victim” to include people who were born as a result of rape. This means that England and Wales will be among the first in the world to officially grant victim status to children born of rape.
The woman, who can only be known as Daisy, hailed Thursday’s announcement by Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Dominic Raab as “important”.
“It’s just amazing,” she said. “I’m still waiting to find out. I hope this makes a difference for others affected by being born of rape, and at the very least makes them feel like they are not alone. It wasn’t until I pursued justice against my birth father that I realized I was invisible in the criminal justice system.
The Government will now recognize people conceived through rape in the statutory Victims Code, which sets out the rights of all victims who report a criminal offense to the police.
The law change will give people who believe they were born the result of rape the right to make a complaint to the police in their own right – and get information and access support in the same way as any other victim of crime.
Daisy tracked down her birth father and demanded that he be tried for raping her birth mother. In August 2021, he was finally convicted of raping Daisy’s birth mother at Birmingham Crown Court.
Daisy, 46, was taken into care days after she was born and adopted when she was seven months old. She knew, from reading her social services records at age 18, that her birth mother was 13 when she was born and her birth father was Carvel Bennett, then 28. The records dating back to 1975, read: “The matter was investigated by the police but never brought to justice.”
Daisy fought the police and other agencies for almost a decade before Bennett was charged. For most of that time, she faced reluctance to press charges because she was told that her birth mother, not her, was the victim of the crime from a legal perspective.
At the time of Bennett’s sentencing, Daisy said: “I’m a walking crime scene. I wanted justice for my mother and I wanted justice for me. The ramifications of what Bennett chose to do shaped my entire life. Because of this crime I am alive. Living, breathing proof of child abuse.
In a statement on Thursday, Raab said: “No child born into these horrific circumstances should be left to suffer alone, which is why we must ensure they have access to vital support when they need it.
Kate Ellis, Daisy’s legal representative at the Center for Women’s Justice, which supported her campaign, said: “Daisy ran an outstanding campaign. Motivated by her own experiences, she started a vital conversation about the hidden harms suffered by children born as a result of a sex crime.
“We hope that this change in the law will not only provide support for rape survivors who contact the police, but will also allow them to play a crucial role in supporting a police investigation.”
Among those who campaigned for the law to be changed is Sammy Woodhouse, who became pregnant with her first son aged 14 after being clipped and raped in Rotherham. Although she was recognized as a victim of sexual exploitation, there was no support for her son to deal with how he was conceived.
She said: “I am very pleased to hear today’s news that children born from sexual abuse will be treated as victims under our law. This is a campaign that I and others have been waging for years.
“I know firsthand how difficult it can be for many of these children, not only from my own personal experience, but from the mothers and children, now adults, that I have met and spoken to. I also called on the Government to provide extra support, training, therapy and funding to all agencies across the UK.
Woodhouse gave up her anonymity after her abuser Arshid Hussain was sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2016 and became an anti-sexual exploitation campaigner.
Add Comment