More than 2,500 women, or one in four, are at risk of domestic violence at any one time in Co Mayo, according to Ms Bernadette Byrne of the Mayo Women's Support Services (MWSS).
Speaking this weekend in the county library, Castlebar, Ms Byrne called on Government to implement a "zero tolerance policy" towards domestic violence.
She was speaking at the launch of a commemorative piece of sculpture, "In Safe Hands", jointly commissioned by MWSS and Mayo Rape Crisis Centre (MRCC) to mark the tenth anniversary of both services.
"The stark statistics revealed in 'Going the Extra Mile', a report we commissioned in 2000, show how this endemic problem continues to scream silently in our communities", she said.
"During the last decade over 1,200 women have accessed our services and for every obstacle we put in place, the violence is further compounded and challenged," said Ms Byrne, assistant manager of MWSS.
The launch of "In Safe Hands", a circular bronze sculpture of intertwining hands by local artist Elaine Griffin was scheduled to coincide with the annual national 16 Days of Action, co-ordinated by Women's Aid, and which began on Thursday last, November 25th, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
Ms Ruth McNeely, director of MRCC, referred to the symbolic importance of a single candle flickering in the library. "It is a simple reminder of the 107 women who have died violently in this country during the last decade".
She said: "The women whose hands were used in the casting of this bowl have been both victims and survivors. But, above all, they are innovators. They have had to engage with courage and fear, isolation and shame and also with love. They have individually rescued themselves, their families and many children from the vicious circles of violence. They have made the real difference. They are the ones who educate us".
Ms McNeely questioned the growing chasm between the reporting of sexual crimes and the centre's "contact rate". "In 2003 the reporting of sexual crime decreased by 23 per cent while our contacts increased by over 90 per cent".
Ms Fiona Crowley, a research officer with Amnesty International, said she shared the concerns of the European Rape Crisis Network and Women's Aid regarding serious inadequacies in Ireland's civil and criminal justice systems.
"Ireland has the lowest rate of conviction for rape in 27 European countries surveyed in a recent European Crisis Networks Report", she said.