Nearly one in ten people in Belgium have experienced incest, according to a survey published on Friday by the Patouche and Together Against Incest collectives, which described the issue as a national emergency.

The groups said the findings suggest more than one million victims nationwide. They added that this is likely to be a minimum estimate.

The poll, which they say is the first of its kind in Belgium, was carried out by research institute Dedicated in April using a representative sample of more than 2,000 people. It was funded through crowdfunding and has a margin of error of 2.19%.

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According to the collectives, the survey does not include victims who are unable to identify themselves as such, including people in psychiatric institutions, homeless people, those who have taken their own lives, and victims still affected by traumatic amnesia or denial.

Using the legal definition of incest in Belgium, which covers sexual acts committed against a minor by a family member in the first, second or third degree, 7% of respondents said they had been victims before the age of 18.

That figure rises to 9% when cousins are also counted as perpetrators. On that basis, 12% of women and 6% of men said they had experienced incest.

The survey found that two-thirds of victims are women and three-quarters of perpetrators are men. For one-third of victims aged under 55, the abuse began between the ages of four and six.

It also found that one in four victims under 55 were abused by several members of their family.

The most frequently named perpetrator was a cousin, cited by 24% of victims and by 29% of female victims. That was followed by an uncle at 23%, a father at 18% and a brother at 13%.

In 69% of cases, the perpetrator was an adult. In 25% of cases, the perpetrator was a minor.

The survey said incest affects all social classes in similar proportions. It found higher prevalence in Brussels, at 14%, than in Flanders, at 7%, or Wallonia, at 6%.

Most victims reported sexual assault, at 86%. Some 45% said they had suffered one or more rapes, while the same proportion reported exhibitionism.

The poll also found that 40% had been subjected to repeated sexualised remarks or disclosures, 33% to sexual harassment, 17% had witnessed sexual violence against another person, and 13% had been forced to pose for erotic or pornographic photos or videos.

According to the survey, 40% of victims had never disclosed the abuse to relatives. Among victims aged 55 and over, that figure rose to 59%.

Almost half of disclosures, 47%, were made only after the abuse had ended, while 22% were made while it was still ongoing.

Seven in ten victims, or 71%, said they had never received psychological care. More than eight in ten, or 85%, said they had never received medical care linked to the abuse.

For 46% of victims, relatives cast doubt on their disclosure. Some 30% said they were then excluded from the family circle.

Nearly two-thirds of victims, 64%, said they had not been protected from their abuser. Among perpetrators, 69% had never admitted the acts, while only 24% had been excluded from or distanced from the family.

The survey also found broad public support for stronger protective measures. Some 87% of respondents backed removing the alleged perpetrator from the home as soon as the abuse is disclosed, while 82% supported allowing the other parent to obtain sole custody of a child victim from that point.

The poll found that 85% of victims had never filed a complaint. Among those aged 55 and over, that rose to 98%.

Where complaints were filed, 26% were dropped without further action and 37% resulted in a conviction.

In response, the two collectives called for cousins to be included in Belgium’s legal definition of incest, which currently covers parents and grandparents, siblings, uncles and aunts, and step-parents. They said that under a broader definition, 29% of Belgians say they know one or more victims.

The organisations also criticised the lack of specialist training on incest, listening to victims and victim care for professionals including paediatricians, psychologists, GPs, psychiatrists, police officers, lawyers, judges, teachers and childcare workers.

They said mandatory training should be introduced across the relevant sectors, both for current professionals and for those still in training. They also called for prevention campaigns in nursery and primary schools.

If the 9% of incest victims are added to those who experienced sexual violence in childhood more broadly, the groups said the scale of the problem is massive and its social, psychological and physical consequences are well recognised by the international scientific community.

They said incest should now be treated as a political priority, with greater investment in prevention, protection and support for victims, and called for reforms across schools, extracurricular settings, the justice system, healthcare and child protection services.