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Women’s groups say doubts cast on chambermaid’s credibility will send wrong message to victims of sexual assault Rape victims around the world may be more fearful of reporting their experiences, as a result of the apparent implosion of the rape case against the against the former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn , UK women’s groups warned. Campaigners warned that doubts about the credibility of the New York hotel worker who accused Strauss-Kahn of sexual assault on 14 May could make victims fear that only “perfect victims” could report rape and receive justice, and could lead to fewer women reporting sexual attacks. “The message that this case gives is that, as a society, we still carry notions of a what a perfect rape victim should look like, and what “real rape” is,” said Holly Dustin, manager of End Violence Against Women . “Rape victims can be less than perfect, they can have insecure immigration status, they can be prostitutes – and they can still be raped. This sends the message to women around the world that unless you are a perfect victim the system will eat you up and spew you out.” The case, which centres on allegations that Strauss-Kahn sexually assaulted a hotel chambermaid after she entered his room to clean, appeared to be imploding after new and damaging stories appeared yesterday in New York newspapers about the woman at the heart of the allegations. Reports on Friday suggested that prosecutors believe they have uncovered lies told by the 32-year-old Guinean-born woman and that she cleaned two rooms, including that of Strauss-Kahn , after the alleged attack, rather than reporting the incident to her supervisor immediately as she originally stated. After Strauss-Kahn hired a team of private investigators allegations also emerged that she made a phone call soon after the alleged rape attempt to a man in prison for drugs violations, in which she talked about possible financial gains to be made from pressing charges and that she had received cash deposits into her bank account over the past two years. Questions were also raised about her asylum application to the US. Dustin said the fallout from the fresh allegations could have a negative impact on potential jurors in rape cases, the media and the general public. “Women will look at how this woman has been treated and think their credibility will be attacked in the same way. It reinforces those notions about what a rape victim needs to be to see justice.” Rapes were already severely under reported, she said. “The vast majority of rapes, around 80-90%, of rapes go unreported in England and Wales, and of those reported rapes only 7% result in convictions.” Fiona Elvines, operations coordinator at Rape Crisis South London said although improvements had been made around the investigation of rape, there was still a lack of understanding of the impact of the crime on women who survived it. “Yet again another message goes out to the thousands of women in this country alone who are currently debating whether or not they should report the violence that has been perpetrated against them, that they will be the ones on trial,” she said. Strauss-Kahn’s bail, which included $1m surety, electronic tags and 24-hour armed guards has been removed since doubts emerged about the hotel worker’s statements. National Rape Crisis helpline: 0808 802 9999. Dominique Strauss-Kahn Rape Alexandra Topping guardian.co.uk