Rape crisis centre RainLily on Tuesday urged officials to reform laws on sexual offences and improve the city’s sex education.

RainLily said the number of cases reported to the centre nearly doubled from just over 1,000 in 2009-2013 to almost 2,000 in 2019-2023.

It also found a significant delay in help-seeking, with people waiting an average of around four years before asking the group for assistance in the past five years.

Doris Chong, the centre’s executive director, said it’s not easy for people to seek help.

“For example, they don't know how to seek help or where to seek help. Also, they don't know how to tell the incidents to others because they always think that it's a shame incident,” she said.

The group also said many cases never get to court because complainants do not feel protected enough.

Albert Yau, a senior research officer with RainLily, stressed the need for a more supportive environment to encourage victims to speak up.

“There may be a lot of stigma attached to such incidents. So I think in order to encourage the victims to seek help promptly, we have to create a more friendly environment to tell them that you will be supported by us,” he said.

The centre wants the government to define “consent” more clearly in the law and to expand the scope of rape offences to better protect victims.