Dara Kay Cohen. Explaining Rape During Civil War: Cross-National Evidence (1980-2009) (2013). The American Political Science Review, Vol. 107, No. 3 (August 2013), pp 461-477. American Political Science Association.
Elisabeth Jean Wood. Armed Groups and Sexual Violence: When Is Wartime Rape Rare? (2009). Politics Society 2009 37:131. Retrieved from http://pas.sagepub.com/content/37/1/131
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Michele L. Leiby. Wartime Sexual Violence in Guatemala and Peru (2009). International Studies Quarterly (2009) 53,445-468
Paul Kirby. How is Rape a Weapon of War? Feminist International Relations. Modes of Critical Explanation and the Study of Wartime Sexual Violence (2012). European Journal of International Relations. 19(4) 797-821.
Introduction
Rape is a topic that many would rather not discuss. A civil war is something citizens of a nation would rather not go through. Victims do not want to relive the ordeal and activists are quick to get justice for the victims of rape and civil wars. Many have done researches on the trauma experienced after rape and civil wars. However, studies have shown that these rape cases vary in occurrence during wars and as such there is need to know why civil war brings rape in it wick. Elizabeth Jean Wood wrote an article on Armed Groups and Sexual Violence: When is Wartime Rape Rare? In her article she discusses various issues and explains scenarios when wartime rape is rare. Her article further explores the patterns of sexual violence that comes as a result of war. Dara Kay Cohen’s article on Explaining Rape during Civil War: Cross- National Evidence (1980-2009) discusses various issues related to wartime rape and its implications for policy makers and scholars.
Paul Kirby analyses how diverse perceptions of how rape could be a weapon that can be used in war in his article on How is Rape a Weapon of War? The various understandings help shape ethical and political projects. Wartime Sexual Violence in Guatemala and Peru article by Michele Leiby focusses on the context that wartime rape occurs and the type of violation done during wars. The four authors are determined to investigate wartime rape and outcomes associated with it. War brings misfortunes for everyone. It affects the political, social and economic aspects a nation. This review seeks to investigate the four articles and determine the various reasons why wartime rape occurs, the possible war times that it does and the various variations of sexual violence that takes place during the war.
Reasons why Wartime Rape Occurs
Reason for wartime rape are classified into three themes according to Dara Kay. She states the three reasons are greed or opportunism, gender inequality and ethnic hatred. Greedy or opportunistic people tend to take opportunity in the middle of chaos to attain their evil desires. These habits are resulted from the breakdown of the state. If there is a war in a country, there is obliteration of social customs and the peace that exists due to the legal prohibitions. The collapsing of a state or region can lead to indiscipline among the combatants. Ethnic hatred is a fuel for civil war. Rape upsurges hatred and deepens the ethnic lines in a country. Some argue that rape is an instrument of forced expulsion and ethnic cleansing during wars as it can guarantee that the fleeing of certain population from a specific territory. Gender disparity aids the acceptance of violence against women. It is an offense that permits the offenders to exact psychological and physical harm on the women and men. The women are wrecked emotionally and the men get to be shamed for failure to protect their women. This in turn, encourages civil war as the people begin to seek vengeance.
This is in line with Paul Kirby’s article where he argues that rape is used a tool and weapon war. It is used to provoke the people to go against each other and fight. He also stated that it is viewed as a reward for the troops who participate in war. Michele also supports this argument by stating that wartime rape can be used to weaken the opposition using generalized terror or targeted repression. It is seen as a way of undermining the strength and vigor of their rivals. She further categorized the violence into two groups which are targeted and indiscriminate violence. Targeted violence is aimed at a particular group while indiscriminate violence is not aimed at specific group. These actions of violence can be made public where an entire community if forced to watch their men, women and children violated leaving behind psychological damages to the people. This kind of emotional damage eventually demoralizes the people especially in communities where purity and sexual honor is key.
Sexual violence was also used to obtain information from the people. This was to frighten and force information out of them. Husbands would be forced to watch their wives being raped if they did not give the information needed. Mothers would watch their young boys sodomized if they did not comply with the soldiers. In order to avoid such ordeals, they would answer any questions thrown their way. Sexual violence was also used to fuel genocides and the intent to destroy a particular group of the people. In some communities, victims of sexual violence are exiled and raped wives abandoned by their husbands. The military can also lose control over the soldiers they are required to command. If control is lost, the agents go on a rampage which leads to extreme violation of human rights. Elisabeth also concurred with the other three authors when she stated that rape is considered an effective war strategy, especially in ethnic cleansing. It is referred to an atrocity that takes place alongside other mayhems. She also stated that war gives opportunities for widespread or mass rape which is a form of weakening the opposition and one of the evils done before committing a genocide.
When wartime rape occurs and when it was rare
Wartime rape occurs when there is a civil war. However, in some cases of civil war, rape cases are barely reported. Wartime rape cases are rampant if there is ethnic hatred for the people of a particular region. Elisabeth stated in her research that, some of the civilians were violated with objects soaked in chilies. In one situation, a grenade was exploded in the genitalia of a woman after she was gang-raped. This shows extreme hatred and despise towards the victim. She also documented that the leaders had to encourage the sexual offenses in order to retain the army. This is because they would have no army if they dismissed the offender.
In her study, Dara recorded that some of the soldiers admitted that they were commanded by their leaders to rape civilians. When the armed groups lost a member, their loss and anger was diverted to the civilians where they would defile and torture them sexually in ways such as electrocution of their genitalia. The soldiers would brag about the numerous intimate encounters they were having and how they were enjoying it. Michele further supported Dara’s statement when she documented in her study that the soldiers who would not participate in the atrocity were punished and humiliated by their superiors. This was a way to ensure that they did the unthinkable to their victims. Women and children who were unable to flee were also victims of rape. Paul recorded that rape during wars is about power. In order to gain power and control over the region and its people, rape cases increase.
Elisabeth stated that, wartime rape cases are limited when the leaders of war are fearful of the penalties of unrestrained sexual violence by the soldiers they have sent out to the field. Leaders of war always want to be in control of the war they are waging and as such they do not want to have to deal with the unintended consequences that may be severe. Limited rape cases during wars are also attributed to the relationships formed between the communities and the soldiers where the soldiers are dependent on the civilians for recruits, intelligence and supplies. In such a case where the military anticipates continued relations, sexual violence will be prohibited. Also in a situation where the armed forces desire to rule the civilians, they are less likely to have mass rape cases in the region. In pursuit of power and acceptance from the people, the leaders are likely to protect the women and children from any harm and in turn win favour with the men in the community.
Furthermore, if the armed groups have women among them, they restrain from sexual violence against the civilians. Michele stated in her research that civilians who were able to flee their homes and villages, were less likely to be raped compared to those who stayed back. The absence of people in villages limited the rape cases. This was an option that women with young children did not opt for but had no choice. Some of those who ran away ended up separated from their children and family.
Variations of wartime rape
The variations of wartime rape vary. All the authors agreed that gang rapes are the most common form of sexual violence during civil war followed by sexual slavery and torture. Sodomy is also heard of during civil wars. Public stripping of men and women is also a sexual violence that some victims of civil war have to go through. The humiliation that men and women go through affects them in every way. According to Elisabeth, in Guatemala and Peru, during civil wars rape is the most common form of abuse. This kind of cruelty was majorly enacted during massacres and community sweeps.
According to Dara Kay, victims would be forcefully abducted from villages and taken to secluded places where they were defiled. The victims who were abducted would be separated from their families and eventually considered dead as some would go missing for days. The soldiers would take turns defiling and torturing the victims. Finally, they would kill them. Michele gave accounts of how soldiers would invade houses and execute husbands on the spot. After the killing, they would rape children and women regardless of whether they were expectant or not and then kill them as well. They would also move from house to house raping civilians. Some underwent torture after being raped where their body parts such as the tongue, ears and breasts were cut off.
Rape cases during war varied significantly. As seen above there were times when, women were raped in public and times when they were abducted and raped in a secluded location. Some were arrested for questioning and sodomized in prisons. There are times women and children were spared from the civil wars and there are moments when they were the target. Victims would be raped for days and some would be raped once and then killed. Others were gang-raped while some were not. In some cases, the public was made to watch the entire ordeal and in some they were not. There are times when husbands would be made to watch as their wives were defiled then they would be killed while in some occasions they themselves were victims of rape. The variations were dependent on the cause of the war and in some cases it was not dependent on anything else apart from the brutal, cold and evil nature of men who have lost their conscious.
There is no justifiable reason for rape. None at all. Rape maybe considered as a strategy for war but its consequences are too many and outweigh its reasons. Scars are left behind. Families are broken and individuals lose themselves. Some become traumatized and fall into depression. Victims and even offenders may contract sexually transmitted infections. Women both young and old are susceptible to unplanned and unwanted pregnancies. Others are ex-communicated from their families and communities and many more are left wondering where we lost our humanity.
Wartime rape cases should be reported and the victims arrested. The victims should be exposed to psychological help where counselors help them overcome the trauma they have gone through. Such policies should be implemented as they will keep the soldiers in check and the victims will also receive the necessary help needed.
