By Jonathan McCambridge, Press AssociationViolence against women and girls is a “particularly difficult” problem in Northern Ireland, the region's Justice Minister Naomi Long has said. Northern Ireland remains a very patriarchal society, abuse of women generally is still accepted. Asked if violence against women was a Northern Ireland problem, the minister said: “I don’t think it is a Northern Ireland-only problem, but I think it is a particularly difficult issue in Northern Ireland in what we do have is a wider prevalence of violence against women and girls. “Northern Ireland remains a very patriarchal society, abuse of women generally is still accepted. “If it is called out by women the abuse that they take, whether it is online or in person, is extreme.

Source: The Herald March 24, 2026 16:52 UTC