ONE in six rape victims is attacked while asleep or unconscious, according to figures released by police as they embark on a campaign to educate men about the laws of consent.
Growing concerns about the number of women and men who have been sexually assaulted while unable to consent has led to the launch of the We Can Stop It campaign.
Police say there needs to be a better understanding of the laws of consent after research showed there is still confusion about what constitutes rape.
Better research procedures established since the formation of Police Scotland have found there is a need to raise awareness of what constitutes rape and to educate both heterosexual and homosexual young men.
The campaign features posters, adverts and social media activity that draws attention to statements from men designed to challenge perceptions of the crime.
Assistant Chief Constable Malcolm Graham said: "Rape is a devastating crime which has a far-reaching impact on victims and families. Changes in the law meant that the definition of rape widened - the clear message being that sex without consent is rape.
"We deal with reports of rape across the country every day. There are a wide range of circumstances around each case - but the common factor is that where there is no consent, it is rape."
"How we investigate rape in Scotland has evolved significantly over the past 12 months. Our National Taskforce works closely with divisional rape investigation units to provide a better and more consistent response to victims of crime and a sharper, more focused approach to targeting offenders."
An increase in the number of reported rapes has shed light on the frequency and nature of offences. One-third of all cases are reported to police more than a year after the event, and one-third take place in a domestic setting. More than 90% of all rapes are committed by someone know to the victim.
Sandie Barton, national co-ordinator of Rape Crisis Scotland, said: "We are delighted to see We Can Stop It going from strength to strength. This campaign plays a valuable role in helping people to understand what rape actually is, and in raising public awareness.
"The law is clear: sex without consent is rape, and we need to make sure the Scottish public understand that.
"We Can Stop It speaks directly to men and offers a very positive message - that rape is preventable, and men can play a positive role in making this happen."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article