For many, the sexual abuse and rape of young children by trusted, respected members of society is not something that is easily accepted or acknowledged, let alone talked about openly and in public.

However, talking openly and honestly is exactly what must be done if the issue of sexual violence against women and children is to be properly addressed and its prevalence challenged.

No matter who the abuser or the victim, sexual abuse and rape are horrific crimes that deserve our undivided attention and absolute commitment.

The fact that, in some cases, the abusers were Catholic priests should not be the most shocking aspect to us, unsettling as it is. What should grab our attention is the fact that the abuse was allowed to carry on unseen and unchallenged for so long, and that so many children and families were hurt.

Sexual violence is, by its very nature, a hidden crime, perpetrated behind closed doors. A wall of silence is maintained through threats, intimidation, grief and shame.

Abusers will often tell the children (and adults) they abuse that no one will believe them if they tell of the abuse, or will threaten to hurt them or family members if they tell.

According to statistics compiled by a New Zealand Rape Crisis Centre, over 60 per cent of sexual violence survivors do not report the abuse to the police, with many survivors feeling unable to tell even close friends and relatives.

It is precisely because of this huge wall of silence that talking openly and honestly is exactly what we must do to break the web of secrets and silence that so often surrounds sexual violence, allowing it to continue unseen and unheard.

Through showing children that sexual violence is not a taboo subject that they must never discuss or mention, we teach children that abuse is wrong, no matter who the perpetrator or the victim is; that it is never their fault; and that it is okay to tell someone about it, if it ever happens to them or someone close to them.

In this way, the spotlight moves away from 'naming and shaming' perpetrators, and onto developing ways to educate children about sexual violence, thus helping to stop it happening in the first place. That is, building fences at the top of the cliff, rather than simply providing ambulances at the bottom.

Educating children about the threat and reality of sexual abuse and rape is now an accepted approach in what has been called a "2000 year revolution" against the prevalence of sexual violence against women and children.

It has been used in countries like Australia and New Zealand for over ten years, where primary schoolchildren are taught about personal safety and the importance of telling safe adults about 'bad touching'.

Secondary school students are taught to recognise and challenge the myths surrounding rape and abuse that perpetrators so often rely on to maintain the wall of silence and shame that protects them.

These myths include statements and beliefs that are often touted as 'common knowledge' by people and groups unwilling or unable to recognise the reality of sexual violence and the fact that we are all, to some extent, compliant in its continuation.

For example, "women wearing short skirts asked for it"; "husbands cannot rape their wives"; "children who tell about sexual abuse are often lying"; and "most reports of rape made to the police are false".

In actual fact, as a North American study carried out in the mid-1990s found, only two per cent of rapes are falsely reported, with eight per cent of reported rapes considered by the police to be 'unfounded'; rates that were found to be very similar to other serious crimes.

In order to challenge and eradicate sexual violence, therefore, it is essential to challenge the many myths surrounding rape and child sexual abuse that serve to keep survivors silent and perpetrators hidden.

In the 1990s, an education programme, aimed at teaching primary and secondary schoolchildren about the dangers and reality of sexual abuse and how to stay safe, was introduced into New Zealand schools.

The programme, "Keeping Ourselves Safe" (KOS), is introduced into the school by local police officers. They provide all materials needed and help to prepare teachers to deliver it to the students.

KOS has been described as "a personal safety programme, which aims to provide children and young people with the skills to cope with situations that might involve abuse", and was developed as a response to "an increased awareness and concern among teachers and police of the need to protect young people from abuse".

A later evaluation of KOS found that children, at schools where the programme had been introduced, were more aware of how to stay safe and protect themselves when potentially in danger than children who had not been through the KOS programme.

The evaluators also found that there were higher success rates where KOS had been introduced with the full support and co-operation of parents, so that children were being taught about staying safe from abuse at home as well as at school.

As they stated, "the easiest and most effective way of educating children for safety is for parents to work in partnership with their children's school".

With the spotlight currently being heavily on child sexual abuse, debates around the prevalence and even mere existence of sexual violence, from child sexual abuse to domestic violence to rape, should be encouraged and fostered, so that sexual violence is no longer a taboo subject that is allowed to continue through silence and fear.

Those in society who work to make visible and challenge sexual violence should be supported, and teachers and other community educators should be encouraged and helped to educate children about the reality of sexual violence and how to keep themselves and others safe.

By teaching children to look after both their own and others' bodies, and to respect people who are different from themselves in terms of gender, race, religion, and sexuality, zero tolerance to violence can start to become a realistic goal, and the myths and silence surrounding sexual violence can begin to be broken.

As a North American Rape Crisis Centre reminds us: remember that the rape culture is one for which we're all responsible.

What is a rape culture?

A culture in which rape is prevalent and pervasive and is sanctioned and maintained through fundamental attitudes and beliefs about gender, sexuality, and violence.

Things you can do to transform a rape culture

Speak up. Teach children to respect children of the opposite gender. Show them that each sex has an immeasurable value and that neither is better, more powerful, or smarter, than the other. Support and promote women who provide positive role models. Celebrate the accomplishments of women and dare to dream of a culture free of sexual violence.

Statistics

More than 670,000 women were victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault, between 1995 and 1996, in the US (National Crime Victimisation Survey. Bureau of Justice Statistics, US Department of Justice, 1997).

In over 90 per cent of cases, survivors know their abusers (Auckland Rape Crisis, New Zealand, 1999).

Dr Tortell is a member of the Women's Study Group.