The percentage of people who had experienced homophobic harassment was
higher than that found by comparable surveys in Great Britain and Ireland.
Such incidents were frequently not reported to the police for a number of
reasons: a perception that the police were homophobic; a belief that the police
would not do anything; and fear of being outed. The report found that there
were two broad perspectives on homophobic violence in NI that there had
been a general increase in attacks; or that the overall level of harassment had
not increased but that there was a greater propensity for violence to be used.
Some attacks also appeared to be systematic and organised. There was a
perception that there was a widespread and unchallenged homophobia in the
media and within many institutions in Northern Ireland.