Forum 3, rape and sexual violence - Essay Example

Rape and Sexual Violence Research Paper Institute Introduction The history of women being raped during wars can be traced back tothe eleventh century and continues to paramount levels even today (Hagen & Yohani, 2010). In a cultural perspective rape can be seen as expressive of the dominance, oppression and the inequality that women suffer (Hagen & Yohani, 2010). During war rape is utilized as a tool of war against families and communities, used to tear them apart and inflict psychological damage to counter resistance (Hagen & Yohani, 2010).

The long-term consequences on the individual victim, and families make this crime the most violent war tool (Hagen & Yohani, 2010).Example of Rape during the Bosnian War Inger Skjelsbaek (2006) in her research, narrates the story of a woman who was raped during the Bosnian war. Danira was raped during the war more than a hundred times over, she was raped by military personnel and by groups of them (Skjelsbaek, 2006). She states that they were never the same men and hated the Muslim women (Skjelsbaek, 2006).

Danira asked them to kill her as she did not want to go back to her family after going through the ordeal (Skjelsbaek, 2006). The Military personnel who raped her and many others with her, were not held accountable for the war crimes and did not undergo any punishment whatsoever. Despite the fact that rape is held prohibited under the ‘Geneva convention’; committing rape during war is a crime punishable by death or under the ‘Article 120 of the American Uniform Code of Military Justice’ the perpetrator can be imprisoned (Stuhldreher, 1994).

Rape cases during war go unpunished due to two main reasons; first for not being reported and secondly for rape being treated as a war weapon (Swiss & Giller, 1993; Keith, 1997).Rape within Military Ranks Recently female army personnel being raped by their colleagues or seniors has become an ‘occupational hazards’ with a drastic increase in the number of occurrences (Meleis, 2013). Statistics in the documentary ‘The Invisible War’, reveal that females serving in the military in the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan are less likely to be killed in battle and more likely to be raped by a military colleague (Meleis, 2013).

Almost 20, 000 people in service are each year raped or sexually assaulted and the victimizers manage to get away with it (Kitfield, 2012). In 2011, 883 cases in the marines and Navy were reported for sexual assault and for the army the number was 1,695 (Wilkinson & Hirschkorn, 2013). Not only women but also men suffer at the hands of the sexual victimization. The number of men being treated for Military Sexual Trauma is above 40% (Wilkinson & Hirschkorn, 2013). Sexual assault can result in disciplinary action against the military personnel.

They can result in monitory fines, suspensions or even a court martial (Wolf, 2012). But the rate of prosecutions in the military are extremely low, due to being not reported, discouraged to be reported and also non-action. It is estimated that 14% of people who experience a sexual assault report it and the rate of prosecution is even lower; 2011 saw a total of 3,192 cases of sexual assault reported, 1,518 were deemed suitable for disciplinary action; of which only 191 convictions in the form of court martial were seen (Wolf, 2012).

No record of sex offenders in the military is kept that could lead to alerting the soldiers and reduce the number of cases; also pointing out that rape and sexual assault are not treated as a serious crime by the department of defence to be kept record of (Wolf, 2012). Nonexistent Law Implementation against war time and war zone rape and sexual assault against the enemy indicate how lightly this violent and heinous crime is taken and is manipulated to harm the army. Which can sometimes give the officers and commanders the false impression and sense of security of not being accountable for such a crime and in turn leads to a high rate of rape and sexual assault against the soldiers (men and women) in ranks of the same forces.

ReferencesKeith, S. (1997 March). Rape as a Weapon of War. Peacework, 270/9. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/docview/194512030/13DE359DCC8742145E8/1?accountid=8289Kitfield, J. (2012). The Enemy Within. National Journal. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved on 7 May 2013 from http://www.nationaljournal.com/magazine/the-military-s-rape-problem-20120913Kristine, H. & Yohani, S. (2010 Dec.). The Nature and Psychological Consequences of War Rape for Individuals and Communities.

International Journal of Psychological Studies, 2/2, 14 – 25. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/docview/840751608/13DE359DCC8742145E8/4?accountid=8289Melesis, D. A. I. (2013). Rape within the Ranks. Dean Meleis. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved on 7 May 2013 from http://deanmeleis.blogspot.com/2013/04/rape-within-ranks.htmlStuhldreher, K. (1994 March). State Rape: Representations of Rape in Viet Nam. The Vietnam Generation Big Book, 5/1-4. Retrieved from http://www2.iath.virginia.

edu/sixties/HTML_docs/Texts/Scholarly/Stuldreher_Rape.htmlSwiss, S. & Giller, J. E. (1993 August 4). Rape as a Crime of War A Medical Perspective. The Journal of American Medical Association, 270/5, 612 – 615. Retrieved from http://www.womens-rights.org/Publications/JAMA%2093.pdfWilkinson, M. A. & Hirschkorn, P. 1998. Pentagon battling military rape ‘epidemic’. CBS News. [Electronic Version]. Retrieved on 7 May 2013 from http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57566084/pentagon-battling-military-rape-epidemic/Wolf, N. (2012). A Culture of Cover-up: Rape in the ranks of the US military. Guardian. [Electronic Version].

Retrieved on 7 May 2013 from http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jun/14/culture-coverup-rape-ranks-us-military