Warwick University- would you want any dgc of yours to go there?

In fact if they are sheep which I doubt that makes them even more dangerous as this means they would follow whatever their leader said - maybe next time the leader might say let’s actually rape them and being sheep, they would.
That is precisely what does happen - there is usually a gang leader and others join in for whatever reasons.

I am afraid and fairly appalled that among some men, particularly after alcohol, there exists a pack animal mentality. It is shameful that the behaviour of supposedly better educated young men would seem to bear this out.

I'm interested that some posters state categorically that these young men can be re-educated/rehabilitated. Where is the evidence to support that assessment?
These young men chose to make threats of rape. They were excluded and appealed the exclusion

I don't know enough to conclude whether education and rehabilitation would be effective in encouraging these young men to reflect on their disgusting behaviour and statements. I do know enough to state the young women concerned will have felt threatened and distressed. I wouldn't want my daughters or grandchildren on campus with young men who have brazenly made these statements, shown no remorse and indeed appealed their exclusion.

Well, PR man involved or not, they have thoroughly succeeded in drawing national media attention to what happened and their spineless and sexist response to it.

It should do wonders for Warwick's recruitment. No woman is going to apply to study there and a lot of foreign students will probably decide to apply elsewhere. I am not sure I would want a son or grandson going there either. No one wants the response 'Oh, you are that university are you.' when asked where they are studying.

Warwick is one of the top Universities in the UK isn't it? This shameful episode is likely to destroy it's image and reputation, and so it should.

Their right to study should have been taken from them and the police should have been informed of their behaviour. I do hope they've been named and shamed.

Those poor girls. It sounds as though they had to justify their distress when interviewed during the investigation. It's shameful.

My son's friend works at Warwick. The rumour mill has it these boys were overseas students. Son mentioned it in Whatsapp family group this afternoon. Warwick has an extremely high proportion of Chinese/Asian students apparently.

Whoever they are, no matter what their background they should be named. In any other publicised case of women being threatened the perpetrator is usually identified.

Warwick University must do this for the sake of all their male students who may feel tarred with the same brush.

I do feel sorry and outraged for all the male students on campus. I feel sure in this day and age most young men have much more respect for women and have awareness that such messages are highly offensive and criminal in intent.

4 have been named on Twitter - their names and photographs couldn’t be more British if they tried. So look what’s happening now - a racist element is brought in because of how Warwick are behaving. Tommy Robinson will be on campus next . Of course the Twitter information could be false but it’s been up since at least yesterday so if it were false I think it would have been removed by now.

The report says that some women were specifically named. In that case, surely there were specific threats of assault on individuals, rather than just boastful – and frightening – verbal abuse of women students in general, which should be taken more seriously by the police.

In spite of all the sensitivity training and promises of a better approach by the police (and legal system) to instances of sexual assault, including rape, it seems to me that things have not in reality improved a lot since the days when I was a student.

I think Warwick University was wrong in not sending the students down immediately. The whole thing may have been "boys will be boys" banter but these young men – not adolescent schoolboys – are supposed to be among the brightest and full of promise. They have responsibility for this and if that means that they have messed up their futures, may be they will apply some thought in their bright brains about their actions. (Adolescent schoolboys also need to be taken to task if they are posting these sorts of comments too.)

I was just thinking, were I a named student that a bunch of young men threatened to rape, how would that affect my concentration and focus on my studies? I would suggest that my very real fears would cause interrupted sleep, lack of concentration, reduction of liberty of movement – not the library until after dark – and many other psychological and practical concerns. Would that affect how well I studied, revised, did exams? You bet!

Not sheep – but a mob where people will join in activities that they would never do alone.

Sorry everyone for a row of posts but I have only just read this thread and am shocked and horrified.

The whole thing may have been "boys will be boys" banter

Absent, if you go up the thread to the link I gave. Hang on, easier just to repeat it here www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-47074583/i-was-sick-when-i-heard-warwick-rape-chat-students-returning What was posted was vile and degrading and you will see it went way way beyond 'boys will be boys banter'.

I appreciate that you are as strong in your condemnation of these events as most of us, but I think anyone discussing this should first hear exactly what these young men said and the contempt and hatred of women and the desire fort their total degradation that this link reveals.

This mob/sheep issue - I think I could accept it happens in the heat of the moment, especially if drink is involved but these ‘chats’ were not in that category - they happened over a period of time and the second one was started after they were already in trouble for the first ‘chat’. They had time to reflect ( and some did) and stop. We have to be careful not to provide excuses for men for their bad behaviour - and god knows we see plenty of those on GN for example when discussing sexual assaults. Most men do not behave like this and those that do are a danger to women and if tbat blights their lives - well tough. As absentsays the women involved have had their lives affected through no fault of their own - apart from being women which as we know is something they are blamed for enough as it is.
As for prosecution etc - the ‘chats’ were apparently in a private FB chat which someone leaked - reminds me of the Grenfell bonfire issue. If it hadn’t been leaked then obviously no one would know about it but once it’s in the public domain then the ‘targets’ know and can be alarmed and fearful. So what’s the legal position then? I guess. It’s problematic . What I do know is that anyone who thinks a FB/ WhatsApp or any private social media group chat is private is a complete and utter fool at the very least .

Surely they should be subject to criminal charges?

Disgusting behaviour I would name and shame them what is even more shocking is that the girl thought they were her friends

Terrorists are charged when found to be plotting over the net. I don't think that privacy comes into it.

You can see their photos online. They are not Asian or Chinese.

Sorry maryeliza I have repeated what you said above.

It doesn't follow automatically that they are British. There are many nationalities who look like that. A lot of guesswork going on here.

Actually - yes it is a completely wonderful uni in a fab part of the country. BUT I do totally agree with you that these young men should be OUT. People who think rape is 'funny' and just a bit of a laugh need are not wanted.

This is the bit that worries me most about the attitudes of the boys "Rape the whole flat to teach them all [a] lesson." In a way I could accept that a group sexual fantasy gone wild could lead, from "who do you fancy" to "I'd sleep with them all" to "how about a group orgy" to "heck just rape the whole uni" as a kind of laugh in very bad taste. But the statement by that one young man above chills me. That's something else beside youthful red blood.

Although I fully believe that these young men should not have been admitted back into the Uni I also think that the Uni is losing an excellent chance to research and to counsel these young men. They are, as they are at Uni some of the most intelligent young men of their generation, investigating them and changing their attitudes would be a valuable service. What has caused this lack of sensitivity a group of educated young men? Is it some sort of primitive back-lash against the equality of women? Is it linked to over use of violent on-line games so that they imagine that nothing they do or say on line is real? There are so many questions about this and the young men who have taken part. It's not OK just to condemn it and them, we need to know far more, only then can we make sure no young men behave like this again and women are safe.

Well we're probably not going to know what actually went into making the decision, but if they could find a way to be really sure that it was just brash speech and didn't represent the real attitudes in any way, then their only crime really was offensive communication. Maybe they had to undergo psychological assessment or something as a condition of returning.

marye but I didn't say any of those things you are arguing with me about. Please don't twist what I said.

Jalima1108 The prison sentence handed out to the man who threatened a news reader surely reflects the fact that his vile threats were sent to her, personally and repeatedly, over years, with the intention of keeping her in a state of terror. The vile, boorish behaviour of the male students seems to have been expressed in emails circulated within a group - some sort of masturbatory fantasy - intended for their own, nasty, consumption.

I know that it difficult to accept that not all behaviour which we find abhorrent is criminal. According to the link, one student was banned from the university for life.

This is another example of social media facilitating people’s basest instincts. Like the man sent to prison, the students were probably inspired by violent online porn.

Good post trisher

I would like more detail on why it is coming out now when apparently the decision was made in October. I would also like more information on the new evidence which made the university reduce the exclusion from 5 years to 2.

I stick to my opinion that there should be rehabilitation for these young men, I can't accept that they are beyond education if they haven't done anything illegal and the police say they haven't, which surprises me. I was brought up in an abusive environment but don't abuse anyone and am only now standing up to anyone who tries to bully me. It took me some years to shrug off my upbringing.