PO377 ETHNIC CONFLICT AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE

Week 13 Seminar: Sexual Violence in Ethnic Conflict

Main seminar questions

1. What is the purpose of sexual violence in ethnic conflict?

2. Can we account for sexual violence occurring so frequently in wartime yet varying between conflicts?

3. How has wartime sexual violence been viewed and responded to by international institutions?

ICTY example case details

Case: Kunarac et al. (IT-96-23 & 23/1) “Foča”

Defendants: Dragoljub Kunarac, Radomir Kovač, Zoran Vukovič.

Charges: Enslavement (crimes against humanity), torture and rape (crimes against humanity and

violations of the laws or customs of war), outrages upon personal dignity (violation of the

laws or customs of war).

Dragoljub Kunarac

Leader of a reconnaissance unit of

the Bosnian Serb Army (VRS) which

Formed part of the local Foča Tactical

Group.

Charges: rape; aided and abetted gang-rape; forced victim to sexual intercourse knowing she did not consent; threatened to kill a witness and her son during an interrogation; treated two women as his property. Convicted: sentenced to 28 years

Radomir Kovač

Sub-commander of the military

Police of the Bosnian Serb Army

(VRS) and a paramilitary leader

in the town of Foča.

Charges: rape; forced victim to sexual intercourse knowing that she did not consent; detained two victims in his apartment; imprisoned girls and intended to treat them as his property; rape; assisted rape; humiliated and degraded victims; forced victims to dance naked on a table; sold three victims to other men. Convicted: sentenced to 20 years

Zoran Vukovič

Sub-commander of the military police

of the Bosnian Serb Army (VRS) and

a member of the paramilitary in the

town of Foča.

Charges: rape of a minor; rape and torture. Convicted: sentenced to 12 years

ICTY Documentary

For further information about the ICTY’s role in the prosecution and adjudication of wartime sexual violence, see their documentary entitled Sexual Violence and the Triumph of Justice: http://www.icty.org/sid/10949. This includes testimony from survivors and witnesses.

Questions to consider

Working backwards…

1.How has wartime sexual violence been viewed and responded to by international institutions (for example, the ICTY as in the example case above)?

2.What motivated these Bosnian Serb men to commit acts of sexual violence against Bosnian Muslim women?

3.What is the purpose of sexual violence in ethnic conflict?

Spend 10 minutes discussing this in small groups, then share your arguments with the class. When preparing your arguments, try to make references to today’s readings wherever appropriate.

Possible functions of sexual violence in ethnic conflicts

Amongst others (see e.g. Coomaraswamy 2003, Farwell 2004, Tompkins 1995):

instrument of terror; punishment; form of torture; expression of totality of victory; reward; destruction of enemy’s spirit and morale; method of ethnic cleansing.

Sexual violence as a weapon of war

A weapon is: “(1) any instrument or device for use in attack or defence in combat, fighting or war, as a sword, rifle, cannon, etc., (2) anything used against an opponent, adversary or victim, or (3) any part or organ serving for attack or defence, as claws, horn, teeth, stings, etc.” (Webster’s Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language cited in Skjelsbæk 2001:213)

As Skjelsbæk mentions, it is contested whether or how sexual violence is a weapon of war. Consider why.

Possible motivations for sexual violence in ethnic conflict

Amongst others (see e.g. Alison 2007, Hayden 2000, Price 2001, Wood 2006):

effects of militarised nationalism; peer pressure/coercion/influence of drugs and alcohol; communication with the enemy/feminisation of the

other ethnic group; systematic means of attaining specific political

objectives.

For additional reasons and relevant theoretical frameworks to elaborate/contextualise these motivations, consult the reading list for this week.

Final questions to consider

1. Is sexual violence a "useful" weapon of war?

2. Can we account for sexual violence occurring so frequently in wartime yet varying between conflicts?

Spend 10 minutes discussing this in small groups, then share your thoughts with the class, even if they are speculative and you are unsure.