7 December 2013
Rape as a Weapon of War in
Burma
Responsibility
to Protect
Related:
14 January
2012
Rape as a Weapon of War in
Syria - Documented March 2011
Civilian victims
of war crimes, crimes against humanity abandoned by UN Security Council
22 Months, 60,000 Dead.
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Revised: 21
April 2010: Released 16 April 2010
Humanitarian Resource Institute
Phone: (203) 668-0282
Url: www.humanitarian.net
United Nations Arts Initiative
Arts Integration Into Education
Url: www.unarts.org
Twitter: unarts
Humanitarian Intervention Initiative
Url: www.unarts.org/H-II
H-II: Darfur: Rape as a Weapon of War - 17 Fold Increase
-
Crimes Against Humanity
By: Stephen Michael Apatow, Founder of Humanitarian Resource
Institute and the United Nations Arts Initiative. [1]
Rape has been used as a weapon of war in Dr Congo -- DR
Congo
gang rape crisis 'spreading', new study says, BBC, 15 April 2010. [2]
Researchers from
Harvard University in the US examined more than 4,000 cases of
sexual assault from 2004 to 2008 and discovered that the number of
rapes carried
out by civilians had increased 17-fold. Joseph Kabila, the
DR Congo president, has asked the UN to withdraw approximately 20,000 UN peacekeepers
that have been deployed in the nation since 1999. [3]
A short distance to the north, the Darfur crisis has been described as
one
of the worst humanitarian crises in the world today. By the end of
2004,
there were an estimated two million people affected by continued armed
conflict
and violence against civilians." [4] The Lancet notes conflict
dynamics
such as changing displacement and causes of deaths estimated the excess
number of deaths to be approximately 300,000. Although violence
was
the main cause of death during 2004, diseases have been the cause of
most
deaths since 2005, with displaced populations being the most
susceptible.
Any reduction in humanitarian assistance could lead to worsening
mortality
rates, as was the case between mid 2006 and mid 2007. [5] In
2007, report
on the crisis in the Darfur region of western Sudan identified
rape
as a systematic weapon of ethnic cleansing being used by
government-backed
Janjaweed militiamen. [6]
On 15 April 2010, the Yale Genocide
Studies Program [7] provided the platform for solution oriented
analysis of the current humanitarian emergency in
Darfur, moderated by Carina Ray,
Professor of History at Fordham University, co-editor of book "Darfur and the Crisis of Governance in Sudan."
[8]
In turn, most coverage of the Darfur crisis provides
only
a cursory understanding of the historical, economic, political,
sociological,
and environmental factors that contribute to the conflict.....
Darfur
and the Crisis of Governance in Sudan remedies this situation by
bringing
together a diverse group of contributors from Sudan and
beyond—scholars,
activists, NGO and aid workers, members of government and the Darfurian
rebel movements, and artists—who share a deep knowledge of the
situation
in Darfur and Sudan. Together, they provide the most comprehensive,
balanced,
and nuanced account yet published of the conflict's roots and the
contemporary
realities that shape the experiences of those living in the region. The
cross-disciplinary dialogue fostered by Salah M. Hassan and Carina E.
Ray
yields a comprehensive understanding of the causes, manifestations, and
implications of the ongoing conflict. -- Cornell University
Press.
The importance of immediate coordinated international action was
emphasized in regards to:
- Comprehensive
analysis [9] of humanitarian emergencies [10] for solution oriented
strategic
planning, stabilization and development.
- Genocide
or the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of
an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group. [11]
- Crimes
against humanity, as defined by the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal
Court [12] Explanatory Memorandum, "are particularly odious offences in
that they constitute a serious attack on human dignity or grave
humiliation or a degradation of one or more human beings. They are not
isolated or sporadic events, but are part either of a government policy
(although the perpetrators need not identify themselves with this
policy) or of a wide practice of
atrocities tolerated or condoned by a government or a de facto
authority.
Murder; extermination; torture; rape and political, racial, or
religious
persecution and other inhumane acts reach the threshold of crimes
against
humanity only if they are part of a widespread or systematic practice."
[13]
In the
context
of international law, it appears the atrocities in Darfur reach
the threshold of crimes against humanity in the context of rape and
political, racial, religious persecution and other inhumane acts
as crimes associated with a widespread or systematic practice.
The Harvard Humanitarian Initiative [14] has published a number of
program-specific publications on topics like the Burden of War, Crisis
Mapping & Early Warning, Gender-based Violence in Conflict, and
Humanitarian Effectiveness. These include:
- Now,
The World Is Without Me: An Investigation of Sexual Violence in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo: By: Susan Bartels, Michael
VanRooyen,
Jennifer Leaning, Jennifer Scott, and Jocelyn Kelly, April 2010.
[15]
- Nowhere
to Turn: Failure to Protect, Support and Assure Justice for Darfuri
Women:
By: Karen Hirschfeld and Jennifer Leaning, May 2009. [16]
- Characterizing
Sexual Violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: Profiles of
Violence,
Community Responses, and Implications for the Protection of Women:
By Jocelyn Kelly, Michael VanRooyen, Jennifer Leaning, and Will Kragin,
August 2009. [17]
- Applied
Technology to Crisis Mapping and Early Warning in Humanitarian Settings:
By Patrick Meier and Jennifer Leaning, September 2009. [18]
- Evidence-Based
Peacekeeping: Exploring the Epidemiology of Lethal Violence in Darfur:
By Alex de Waal, et. al., March 2010. [19]
- New
Technologies in Emergencies and Conflicts: By Diane Coyle and
Patrick Meier, UN Foundation-Vodafone Foundation, 2009. [20]
In the
context
of international criminal human rights violations, rape, [21]
honor
killings, [22] and female genital mutilation [23] are now a focus of
the
UN Human Rights Council [24] with a call for classification as Crimes
Against
Humanity [25]. International support for prosecution of
these crimes has intensified with evidence collection, photo, video
documentation, collaboration and victim protection in every UN
member country. [26]
Sexual Violence in the Sierra Leone Conflict, presents
evidence of horrific abuses against women and girls in every region of
the country by the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF), as well as
other rebel, government and international peacekeeping forces. -- We’ll
Kill You If You Cry: Human Rights Watch. [22]
The United Nations reported that
as many as 5,000 women and girls worldwide were killed last year by
family members, "many of them for the 'dishonor' of having been raped."
-- In Turkey, 'Honor Killing' Follows Families to Cities: Washington
Post
Foreign Service, 8 August 2001. [27]
Rule 96 which governs the testimony of victims of sexual
abuse and assault requires no corroboration of the victims testimony;
consent is not a defense if the victim has been subjected to or
threatened with violence, duress, detention or psychological oppression
or if the victim reasonably believed another would be so subjected if
she did not submit. - Patricia M. Wald, Dealing with Witnesses in War
Crime Trials: Lessons from the Yugoslav Tribunal, Vol 5, p. 222.
References
1. Stephen Michael Apatow, Founder of Humanitarian Resource
Institute and the United Nations Arts Initiative. Url: http://www.apatow.org
2. DR Congo gang rape crisis 'spreading', new study says, BBC, 15 April
2010. Url: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8621394.stm
3. Rapes 'surge' in DR Congo: Aljazeera,
15 April 2010. Url: http://english.aljazeera.net//news/africa/2010/04/201041595648701631.html
4. Darfur: One Year On: World Health Organization, 2004. Url: http://www.emro.who.int/sudan/pdf/Darfur%20report%202004.pdf
5. Patterns of mortality rates in Darfur conflict: The Lancet, Volume
375, Issue 9711, Pages 294 - 300, 23 January 2010. Abstract (article is
made available free of charge). Url: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2809%2961967-X/abstract
6. Janjaweed Using Rape as 'Integral' Weapon in Darfur, Aid Group Says:
The Washington Post, 3 July 2007. Url:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/02/AR2007070201627.html
7. Yale Genocide Studies Program:
Yale University. Url: http://www.yale.edu/gsp/
8. Darfur and the Crisis of
Governance
in Sudan: Cornell University Press, Url: http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/cup_detail.taf?ti_id=5595
9. United Nations Agencies: World Map Url: http://www.un.org/aroundworld/map/
10: Countries and Emergencies: Reliefweb. Url: http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/dbc.nsf/doc401?OpenForm
11. The Prosecution of International Crimes. A Practical Guide to
Prosecuting ICC Crimes in Commonwealth States (2005). Url: http://vlex.com/vid/icc-crimes-43094182
12. Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: Url: http://untreaty.un.org/cod/icc/index.html
13. As quoted by Guy Horton in Dying Alive - A Legal Assessment of
Human Rights Violations in Burma April 2005, co-Funded by The
Netherlands Ministry for Development Co-Operation. See section "12.52
Crimes against humanity", Page 201. He references RSICC/C, Vol. 1 p.
360. Url: http://www.ibiblio.org/obl/docs3/Horton-2005.pdf
14. Harvard Humanitarian Initiative: Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/publications/hhi-program-publications
15. Now, The World Is Without Me: An Investigation of Sexual Violence
in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: By: Susan Bartels, Michael
VanRooyen, Jennifer Leaning, Jennifer Scott, and Jocelyn Kelly,
April 2010. Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/images/resources/reports/hhi-oxfam%20drc%20gbv%20report.pdf
16. Nowhere to Turn: Failure to Protect, Support and Assure Justice for
Darfuri Women: By: Karen Hirschfeld and Jennifer Leaning, May 2009.
Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/images/resources/reports/nowhere_to_turn.pdf
17. Characterizing Sexual Violence in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo: Profiles of Violence, Community Responses, and Implications for
the 17. Protection of Women: By Jocelyn Kelly, Michael VanRooyen,
Jennifer
Leaning, and Will Kragin, August 2009. Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/images/resources/reports/final%20report%20for%20the%20open%20society%20institute%20-%201.pdf
18. Applied Technology to Crisis Mapping and Early Warning in
Humanitarian Settings: By Patrick Meier and Jennifer Leaning, September
2009. Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/images/resources/reports/whitepapers_f_11.pdf
19. Evidence-Based Peacekeeping: Exploring the Epidemiology of Lethal
Violence in Darfur: By Alex de Waal, et. al., March 2010. Url: http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/images/resources/reports/evidence-based%20peacekeeping_2.pdf
20. New Technologies in Emergencies and Conflicts: By Diane Coyle and
Patrick Meier, UN Foundation-Vodafone Foundation, 2009. Url: http://www.globalproblems-globalsolutions-files.org/pdf/UNF_tech/emergency_tech_report2009/Tech_EmergencyTechReport_full.pdf
21. A Landmark Ruling on Rape: New York Times. 24 February 2001.
Url: http://www.criminology.fsu.edu/transcrime/articles/A%20Landmark%20Ruling%20on%20Rape.htm
22. We’ll Kill You If You Cry: Human Rights Watch Url: http://hrw.org/reports/2003/sierraleone/sierleon0103.pdf
23. Female genital mutilation; World Health Organization. Url: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs241/en/
24. UN Human Rights Council: Url: http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/
26.
Interpol:
Genocide, War Crimes, and Crimes against Humanity. Url: http://www.interpol.int/Public/CrimesAgainstHumanity/default.asp
27. In Turkey, 'Honor Killing' Follows Families to Cities: Washington
Post Foreign Service, 8 August 2001. Url: http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/dilberk.htm
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H-II: Humanitarian Intervention Initiative
Related Articles:
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