Practicum in International Affairs * Spring 2009

1. Practicum in International Affairs * Spring 2009 UNIFEM * combating Rape as a weapon of warGraduate program in international affairsthe new school university alisha bhanjijihane ben khedherharuka ishiimayuri saxenakarin smithnicole weitznersupervisor - ambassador rafat mahdi

2. Rape as a Weapon or Tactic of War is different from independent cases of rape • Purpose of this war strategy is to • Demean the woman • Make her unacceptable to her community • Impregnation • Infect her with HIV/AIDS and other STDs • Break up communities and families • Long Term Effects • Women are expelled from their communities • Poverty • Children of Rape are taunted • Children of Rape become orphans • Psychological and Medical effects Rape as a weapon of war

3. Women are usually seen as second class citizens, even objects, in most conflict societies • Need to empower women • However, empowerment does not necessarily imply that rape will not occur • Women in conflict parties with authority do not necessarily protect or sympathize with women from the opposing side Role of women in conflicts

4. Un resolutions Resolution 1325 • October 2000 • UN recognition of the unique impact of war on women • Recognition of the lack of women’s participation in • conflict prevention • peacekeeping • conflict resolution • peace building • Calls for increased efforts to ensure equal and full participation of women in all the above areas Resolution 1820 • June 2008 • Condemns use of rape during conflicts as war tactic • Declares that perpetrators using rape as a tactic of war will be prosecuted as committing a war crime and a crime against humanity

5. practicum • Analyze 6 countries in which rape was used as a weapon of war • Angola • Bosnia Herzegovina • Rwanda • DRC • Liberia • Sudan - Darfur • Pre Conflict • Role of Women in Society • During Conflict • Conflict history • Prevalence of Rape Cases • Role of conflict actors, gov’t, and int’l actors • Post Conflict • Women’s role in peace process • Victim services • Justice system

6. Cases of Sexual Violence During Conflicts Bosnia & Herzegovina • Camps for systematic rape • Susica Detention Center • Foca, Bosnia – women held captive in makeshift detention centers • Youngest victim was 12 years old • Victims gang raped nightly • Those who became pregnant were forced to give birth Rwanda • Pauline Nyiramasuhuko (minister for family and women's affairs) • Suspected of ordering troops to rape thousands of women • Currently facing trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda • Charges include rape as genocide and other crimes against humanity.

7. More cases DRC • Goma and Kalemie – 40,000 victims • Bunia – 8-10 women raped daily • Eastern DRC - 23% of people witness to sexual violence, 16% direct victims of sexual violence • In one town reported 70 % of women were victims of sexual violence • South Kivu - 90,000 victims Darfur • Overwhelming majority of rapes occurred between villages and forests, a 5 km walk, where women go to retrieve fire wood • Role of women predominately to collect fire wood and water • Even if roles reversed men would be killed regardless • Lesser of two evils is to have women being raped

8. Sexual violence is not being tolerated but there are reasons why it occurs • A combination of neglect and limitations • Must address issues at the local, government and international levels Neglect and limitations

9. Women unable to effectively address rape issue due to: • Lack of resources and status • Fear; Women’s lips and tongues are cut out to prevent them from testifying against perpetrators • Stigmatization against women that speak up about sexual violence • few or no services to help with medical, psychological, societal, and security issues • Gender biases in patriarchal societies, in which women cannot participate in local government Local

10. The government is in a weak state and lacks the resources and infrastructure to protect its women and penalize those who are responsible for these horrendous crimes • In tribal conflicts, there is no well defined civil society to represent women National Government

11. Delayed reactions and no concrete solutions • Difficulty getting approval from national governments to deliver services • Funding allocation non-specific for rape victims • Lack of local resources – e.g. translators, female staff, local staff • Lack of awareness about cases of rape used as war tactic International Community

12. Inadequate response by UN to address the issue of sexual violence • Lack of coordination and cooperation among UN agencies • Unclear UN Security Council mandatesregarding intervention and protection of victims The united nations • Failure to train Peacekeeping forces to intervene in cases of sexual violence against women • Absence of accountability for governments where sexual violence has taken place

13. UN Special Rapporteurs on Violence Against Women in Conflict • Domestic and International Sexual Violence Advisors • Collaboration among UN agencies • UNIFEM and DPKO particularly during conflict • Bi-annual reports • A package on rapid intervention • Early Investigation • Emergency Trials Recommendations: protection

14. States should engage and sensitize males about the positive aspects of empowering women within their societies, particularly: • Intellectuals • Respected members of the community • Tribal chiefs • Village elders • Religious leaders Recommendations: Prevention

15. The UN should urge member states to increase women’s participation in peace talks and all levels of government (political, judicial, law enforcement) • Quotas • Targeted recruitment efforts • Incentives (scholarships, mentoring programs) Recommendations: Participation

16. The UN should create a strong, new gender agency for women, similar to UNICEF • Personnel recruited from other UN agencies (UNIFEM, OSAGI, DAW) • Services for rape victims, Protection, Advocacy Final recommendation

17. The use of Sexual Violence as a war tactic is increasing • UN Resolutions 1325 and 1820 are steps in the right direction, but much remains to be done • Our project seeks to improve the implementation of Resolutions 1325 and 1820 We hope that our Recommendations will contribute to the outstanding work of UNIFEM and other UN agencies and to the local and international efforts in combating rape as a weapon of war ****** Final Thoughts…