Tom Meagher, whose wife Jill was murdered in Australia says it's dangerous to defend the likes of convicted rapist Ched Evans - while decrying 'more violent' rapists.
He told The Ray D’Arcy show today: “I think it’s how we kind of separate the idea of the “friendly abuser” and the monster. People who rush to defend Ched Evans might be the first people to violently condemn people like Adrian Bayley.
“The root of all these problems is that people view one as a bit of horse play and one as a violent rape. Then we kind of discount the pain of the abused,” he added.
Jill Meagher was raped and murdered by Adrian Bayley in Melbourne in 2012.
Tom is working with the Irish element of the White Ribbon campaign – “the world’s largest male-led movement to end violence against women”.
Figures show that almost half of Irish women have been sexually harassed and 42 percent have experienced some form of sexual abuse or assault in their lifetime.
This afternoon the Irish Times is reporting that the White Ribbon campaign in Ireland was forced to retract its claim that 3,500 rapes were recorded in Ireland last year. The official figure recorded by the Central Office of Statistics was 451.
The White Ribbon campaign launch was supported by Garda Commissioner Noirin O’Sullivan, Tom Meagher whose wife Jill was raped and murdered in Australia and broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan.
