Royal commission into child sex abuse releases interim report, calls for extension and more funds
The royal commission investigating institutional responses to child sex abuse has handed down its interim report, but says it has not yet compiled enough information to make any recommendations.
It is calling for another two years to complete its work, as well $104 million in extra funding.
The royal commission says it has identified several main themes from the many personal stories it has heard.
The themes include repeated abuse and multiple perpetrators, barriers to reporting the abuse and adults that have systematically failed to protect children.
However, it says it is not clear how prevalent abuse has been, or continues to be, in institutions.
The royal commission says its initial research shows 90 per cent of perpetrators were male.
It has found that it took 22 years on average for victims to report abuse, with men taking longer than women.
It says female victims were, on average, aged nine years old and took, on average, 22 years to report abuse.
Male victims were, on average, 10 years old when they were abused.
The creation of the royal commission was announced by former prime minister Julia Gillard in November 2012.
Ms Gillard said there had been too many revelations of "adults who have averted their eyes" from the evil of child sexual abuse.
"Australians know... that too many children have suffered child abuse, but have also seen other adults let them down - they've not only had their trust betrayed by the abuser but other adults who could have acted to assist them have failed to do so," she said at the time.
