THERE is a remarkable young Irish woman from Limerick called Natasha O’Brien.

She came to public prominence when she campaigned against the unfairness of the suspended sentence given to the man who had brutally attacked her.

Following an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions, he was sent to prison. After the attack, he had boasted on Snapchat: “Two to put her down, two to put her out.”

Her bravery in standing up and refusing to accept the injustice she saw in that sentence brought her media attention across Ireland.

She has spoken both of the horror of the attack and of the strength she drew from the support she received. Her subsequent campaigning brought to light some very uncomfortable truths about our country.

The charity Women’s Aid, for instance, reported that its national and regional services were contacted 32,144 times in 2024 by people seeking help. It is an astonishingly bleak figure.

You’d have to worry about men,........

© The Irish Post