A CAMPAIGN to reduce the number of rapes over the festive period will be launched today by Greater Manchester Police.
Police are taking preventative action by launching an awareness campaign ahead of the party season.
Superintendent Phil Owen, of GMP’s Local Policing Improvement Branch, said: “As the Christmas party season approaches, we want people who are going out to have a good time, but to keep themselves safe.
“As part of a week-long awareness campaign, we will be using a number of tactics, such as distributing posters to licensed premises to highlight important messages, such as ‘sex without consent is a crime’ and ‘let your hair down, not your guard’.
“Throughout this campaign, we also want to encourage people to report rape to us. I want to reassure people that we take rape extremely seriously and constantly strive to improve the service and support we give to victims.”
Between April 1 and October 31, 2008, there were 526 rapes and attempted rapes reported in Greater Manchester. Alcohol featured in around two thirds and this figure is expected to increase over the Christmas period.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article