Testimony of Derry survivors of paramilitary-related coercive control praised by Justice Minister Naomi Long

The study by Dr. Aisling Swaine, Professor of Peace, Security and International Law at Sutherland School of Law, UCD, was carried out between 2021 and 2023 in conjunction with the Foyle Women’s Aid.

It focused on the Derry area, and gathered testimony from women who had suffered coercive control from partners and who spoke of the influence of paramilitarism.

This week the report was praised by Alliance MLA Nuala McAllister at Stormont.

Ms. McAllister said Dr. Swaine had ‘highlighted the prevalence of paramilitary violence against women and girls’ and asked Ms. Long for her assessment of the publication.

Ms. Long replied: “First, I commend Dr. Swaine and Foyle Women's Aid for the important research that was produced on the topic of paramilitary-related gendered coercive control.

"I was pleased to be at the launch of that report to signal my clear support for the work that is being done on the subject.

"The research was timely and important. It provides real insight into the experience of women who have faced paramilitary-related gendered coercive control.

"The report and the testimonies of victims and survivors makes for harrowing and sobering reading. Those women have faced horrendous physical and sexual harm, including threats, surveillance and displacement and in relationships where they should have felt safe.”

The report drew from two focus groups and 30 interviews that ‘included victim– survivors whose experiences of intimate partner violence (IPV) were in some way affected by paramilitarism and with political, community and service sector workers’.

“The research was challenged by being able to safely reach women in contexts of control, exemplified by one respondent who said: 'Nobody is going to talk about paramilitarism if it’s current...why would you, if you were married to a paramilitary would you talk about it, sure you’d get shot,'” the report stated.

Dr. Swaine noted how the ‘Communities in Transition’ programme in Derry found that ‘63 per cent of participants felt that paramilitaries generate fear and intimidation in their area (with the average across the programme regionally at 27 per cent)’.

The report found that ‘paramilitary conventions are exploited to evidence the potential for group-based control coming into the relationship’.

"This mattered greatly: ‘that definitely raised the level of fear … especially when he started getting third parties involved. I mean I thought, is this another guy from his group – could it be one of them?...is he also paramilitary?’" was the experience of one participant in the research.

She went on: “And the other one that said, ‘get out of Derry, why are you still here?’ So then I’m thinking, he is using a third party, there must be more of them, he’s got his whole gang now involved’.”

The report found coercers deliberately make their involvement in paramilitarism known.

"There was a video sent … the IRA fella I used to go with and his brother … videos of them fighting with boys in the street with hammers and knives and stuff like that there. That just made my threat level go up, I was like right now, I don’t know what he’s fully capable of here,” was the testimony of another survivor.”

Police receiving 100 reports of coercive control a month