Yesterday was National Stalking Awareness Day, and Northamptonshire Police are reassuring the public that they should be confident in reporting to the Police, partnership agencies or the National Stalking Helpline.
Victims are encouraged to come forward, and a dedicated team of officers at the new domestic abuse unit, based at Mereway, will investigate all cases thoroughly.
It is now two years since the launch of the National Stalking Helpline. The charities which run the Helpline – Suzy Lamplugh Trust, Protection Against Stalking and Network for Surviving Stalking, alongside the National Cyberstalking Research Centre - have shown that although individuals are more likely to become a victim of stalking than any other kind of inter-personal violence.
The National Stalking Helpline service is receiving more calls then ever before from people reporting obsessive, unwanted behaviour that is blighting their lives. Yet many people still do not understand the seriousness of the crime and unfortunately the attitude to stalking is in need of great change.
Too often stalking is treated as a joke, for example, on T-shirts which say “Some call it stalking, I call it love” These attitudes are of great concern to charities and organisations working with stalking victims. Victims who have contacted the National Stalking Helpline often tell how they felt unable to seek help early on because of a fear of being laughed at or dismissed. This puts them at higher risk of experiencing psychological distress, including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or being physically assaulted or even murdered.
http://www.northants.police.uk/default.aspx?id=9573&datewant=yes
