Sexual harassment and Sexual violence . Are we tolerating it? Are we excusing it? And if we are, even if we are doing so only at the lower stages, are we facilitating a culture in which it is really hard for victims to be heard, to be helped, to be supported?

These are the questions the National awareness “No Excuses “campaign are asking.

The Government want to start conversations that will make the public question their attitude to sexual harassment and sexual violence. The second burst of the campaign begins this week and will run for the month of October.

No Excuses is a high impact media campaign to reach a national audience and it will feature TV, cinema, radio, outdoor, social and digital advertising. It is part of the Second National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence 2016-2021.

The aim of the No Excuses campaign is to:

• increase the awareness of sexual harassment and sexual violence
• to bring about a change in long established societal behaviours and attitudes
• to activate bystanders with the aim of decreasing and preventing this violence

The ads highlight and help people recognise the many precursors to sexual harassment and sexual violence and it is hoped that people will hold such behaviours and its precursors totally unacceptable. The ads feature both male and female perpetrators and victims.

It calls on us to stop excusing sexual harassment and sexual violence.

The ultimate goal is to reduce and prevent the incidences of sexual harassment and sexual violence which effects the lives of too many people both directly and indirectly, and thereby make Ireland a much safer society.

AT the launch of the campaign Minister Flanagan said:

Research has shown that Ireland suffers from disturbingly high levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence. These ads highlight and help people recognise these behaviours and the many precursors to them. They call on us to reflect on our own reactions and to stop excusing sexual harassment and sexual violence. I hope that they will help all of us to hold such behaviours and their precursors totally unacceptable with the ultimate goal of reducing and preventing the incidences of sexual harassment and sexual violence, which affect the lives of too many people in our society both directly and indirectly.

The website provides further information as well as advice on how to help in such situations. www.gov.ie/noexcuses