‘My father raped me then told me it was better to lose my virginity to him than a random person in a hotel’

A young woman who was raped by her father at the age of 12 has shared her story in the hope it will help other victims of sexual abuse. Gemma Schembri, now 21, from Lincolnshire, revealed her father, Mark, had always been controlling but took his abuse further after he split up with her mother.  She said: ‘He started to sexually abuse me when I stayed with him and it went on for over a year. He was very manipulative and controlled my thoughts to make me believe it was normal. ‘The first time he raped me he said afterwards, “Well it was better that it was with me than with some random person in a hotel”.’ Gemma said she didn’t realize what her father was doing was wrong and it took her years to pluck up the courage to reveal she was a victim of abuse.  READ MORE HERE