FAMILY TERROR

By Charles Akhimien 

Rape is defined as one person forcing another, without this person's consent and using violence or threatening violence, to have intercourse or other forms of sexual activity. The same definition is applicable if the person is violated while in a vulnerable state such as sleep, unconsciousness, intoxication, physical or mental disability. Any present or previous relationship between the parties is irrelevant.

Rape is an act of violence against women that occurs in all cultures and amongst all races. A growing trend in cases of rape is that most of them are now being perpetuated in the home, by family members. This for most women is their home where they are supposed to feel most safe. For many, ‘home’ is where they face a regime of terror and violence at the hands of somebody close to them, somebody they should be able to trust. These victimized women suffer physically and psychologically, even more so that other victims of rape, because more than the act itself it was a breach of trust. They are unable to protect themselves and their human rights are denied and their lives are stolen from them by the ever-present threat of violence.

Here is the story of Laura Hardesty, a 26 year old.

At the age of 15, I was sexually abused by a family member. I was raped, losing my virginity to my Uncle. At the time he was 35 years old and married.

It was July, and I was on summer vacation. I went to visit my Moms side of the family in Alaska. I flew into Anchorage, Alaska on the 4th of July. I had never been to Alaska before, and had never met most of my family members that lived in Alaska. I had been invited to visit by my Grandfather. I was going to stay with him and meet all my Aunts, Uncles, cousins, and even Great- Grandma. I was so excited!

After that I wish I could go into more specific detail, but I have very scattered memories of the month I was there, actually, there more flashbacks than memories.

I hadn’t had alcohol much before, but it seemed so cool that my Uncle was giving me dinks. I remember having champagne at his house while he showed me around. His wife was at work, and he took me to meet her on the way to their house. But he refused to introduce me as his niece. He told his wife I was his cousin, he told other people I was his wife or girlfriend. He had a nice house and fancy things, drove a new car. Looking back, things should have started to seem strange. He told me details about the “open relationship” he and his wife had, but it was all kind of over my head and I was happy to go with the flow so everyone would like me. He also told me how much I looked like my Dad, and how much fun he’d had spending time with my family in the past. He even told me stories about babysitting my older sister and brother before I was born. I thought I was safe, he was family, my Moms brother, he was older, and married. He just seemed like the “cool” Uncle. At 15 years old I had no idea that those things weren’t enough to keep me safe. I didn’t know I should be worried, and no one else did either.

We were all going on a family fishing trip. When my Uncle asked me to ride with him it seemed great! Cool car, cool guy and a road trip! We both drank beer during the car trip. It never occurred to me that he was drinking and driving. In the car we talked a lot, I’m pretty shy, but the beer put a big dent in that. He kept pushing me to drink more, handing me drink after drink. I tried saying no, but he’d tease me, making me feel stupid and keep giving me drinks anyway. He asked me all about school and friends; he seemed really interested in everything I had to say. I wasn’t used to this and it made me feel special. He went on and on about how pretty I was. No one had ever paid attention to me like that before; it felt good to be noticed. At one point my Uncle asked me if I was a virgin. But by now, I had figured out that he was going to think it was stupid if I said yes, so I lied. This is one of the biggest regrets I’ve ever had. I’ve struggled for years thinking that this point alone could have changed things. If I had just told the truth and said I was a virgin maybe none of it would have happened. I’ve been told many times that it wouldn’t have changed things, but I still struggle with feeling like that lie made it my fault. The lie that changed my life forever.

After that things really get fuzzy. I was in numerous bars, and he had stepped things up to hard liquor. I’ll never forget his drink, rum and coke. He started pushing drinks with double shots in them and that was it. I vaguely remember an elevator ride. The next thing I remember was waking up in a motel room. I was naked and there was blood all over the white sheets and I had no idea why. I was so confused and sick; I went straight to the bathroom and vomited. After that I began looking for my clothes. I couldn’t find my underwear. Somewhere along the way my Uncle woke up. I asked him what happened, and he told me that I had invited him into my bed. He asked me if I was sore, I didn’t understand why. I got sick again. Then he gave me back my underwear. I asked what the blood on the sheets was from and he said he didn’t know, he even asked me if I had started my period. I was stunned. When I started to put things together I felt nothing, not mad, not sad, nothing. I never cried. I asked him if he used a condom. He said he hadn’t, I was instantly worried I was pregnant. I told him I had been a virgin, explaining I hadn’t started my period, he had taken my virginity. He reasoned with me that he would never have done it if he’d known that I was a virgin. After that I took a shower so hot my skin turned bright red. I felt so dirty, no amount of soap and hot water seemed to be enough. I also noticed a cut on my head. But after that I was just vacant inside.

(Laura is a survivor and a member of the Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network (RAINN) Speakers Bureau).

Tales such as these are becoming increasing commonplace all over the world, as violence against women perpetuated by family members is on the rise.

These acts of violence against women represent the most egregious infringement on human rights in the 21^st century. In a world of so much sophistication and technological advancement, violence against women is an anachronism. To eradicate such acts we have to take them just as serious as racism is taken. My mother always used to say “women are like flowers”. Indeed women are flowers that need to be handled and treated delicately. Thus protecting a woman is the decent thing to do; the only thing to do!

Walking that Walk- II: Anti- rape legislations - The Good, Bad and Ugly

As a matured progressive society even if we ignore and discount the un-becoming comments by a host of public figures on the big ‘R’ word  [only one of the many links showing a host of public figures putting their foot in their mouths on this issue made it to this write up - http://www.buzzfeed.com/tasneemnashrulla/22-comments-about-rape-that-will-make-you-really-angry] culturally, there is still a vast number of people who are either in denial of the severity of such offences or believe in one more of the following [for lack of a better word] ‘Anti- progressive Myths’:

X     Anti-rape movements are ‘Feminist’: These are not crimes against womanhood, these are targeted against perceived ‘vulnerability’.  It is hence not a ‘Feminist’ issue but a ‘Human Rights’ issue.

X     The victim brought it upon to themselves:  There is NO [absolutely NO] action of the victim that is a good enough an excuse to blame the victim. Nothing invites an infringement like this. [If satire is doesn’t offend you here’s a good watch- http://youtu.be/8hC0Ng_ajpY ]

X     Stereotypes for victims and offenders: There are no types or generic characteristics of Victims and also of Offenders with regards to age, color, background, lifestyle or track record or what they wear or do or where they live.

X    Low number of reported cases means lower rate of crime:  Studies in USA estimate~ 54% cases go unreported, ~ 70% in UK [ this was discouraging enough to not research this any further or refer to statistics on reported cases as benchmarks].

X     Ratio of falsely reported cases is very high:  Though there is no exact study on this, the number of falsely alleged cases is considered ~ 2-8% varying across various countries on basis of some older studies i.e. around 92of100 victims are not lying. Good enough case to have stringent laws.

This is one of the most complex crimes to deal with, where the burden of proof on the victim is in addition to coping with the social stigma attached to it. Being lost in Mens rea, Actus reus- definition of what constitutes [does not constitute] the crime and Consent or no consent etc. takes preference over victim’s personal trauma or need for closure.

Sometimes, crimes seem tad too dynamic and the law a bit rigid. In times [that we all hope have] gone-by some cultures accepted punishing the victims as ‘closure’ or ‘restoration’ to victim’s family. Such offences have travelled through time to evolve from Not being an offence at all to Being an offence towards ‘family-honor’  to Being a ‘side–kick’ offence [i.e. punishable depending on gravity of alleged offences like murder or abduction or acts of cruelty] to being recognized a Human Rights' Violation. In the modern day while the penal provisions in most countries – range from Imprisonment for 2 years to Life, below are examples of the Good, Bad and the Ugly of [Anti] Rape Legislations:

The Good: Thanks to the UN membership charter that considers rape as a human rights’ violation, such offences at least get considered as an offence. i.e. 170+ countries have [some] legal provisions against such crimes.

The Bad: Take it with a pinch of salt- In Panama, penalty for rape and/or domestic violence carries sentences of 2 to 4 years imprisonment but you steal a cow and its 8 years of jail time.

The Ugly: Good thing the Islamic law-following countries prescribe capital punishments for offenders, but in practice there have been instances where the victims have been punished with jail time and lashes quoting the unwritten Sharia Law for not adhering to gender segregation [i.e. being alone with a man who is not a relative].

In a civil, abiding society the objective of law should as much to prevent and deter the crime as much it is to bring justice or maintain order….Here’s how a legislation could help:

1.       Despite the cultural differences across the world, a global minimum standards anti-rape code could really elevate the effectiveness of the legislations in a lot of countries.

2.       Such crimes are a matter of immediate attention and should qualify for Fast track trials Speedy redressal of offences and stringent penal consequences would go long way to deter the rate of crime.

3.       Incorporating provisions for a strong support system by way of registered help networks for victims that could be involved at early stages of the incident to aid reporting, medical examinations, judiciary processes and most important psychological and social rehabilitation of victims.

4.       Legal provisions to penalize practices like human trafficking, domestic violence, bride-price, female feticide, FGM etc.

Data Sources:

1.            http://www.unodc.org/documents/data-and-analysis/statistics/crime/CTS12_Sexual_violence.xls

2.            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_rape_accusations#cite_note-17

3.            http://www.newsroompanama.com/panama/6898-stealing-a-cow-more-serious-than-rape-new-law.html

4.            http://pamelageller.com/2013/07/statistics.html/

5.            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qatif_girl_rape_case

6.            http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_statistics#Rape_statistics_by_country

By Jotika C

PS: Since this is the sequel to ‘Walking that walk’, makes a case for a quick introduction:  While we come across a lot of ambitious ‘intends’, the harsh reality remains that talking that talk is a lot easier than walking down that tough road to action. The ‘walking that walk’ series is an attempt to distinguish the talks from the walk and let data speak for itself.

Rape: Understanding some elements

Rape is a tragic and traumatic incident. But collecting evidence at a primary level can be done by the person who has been raped or the person's close confidantes. As unfortunate as it is, with increasing cases of rape one never knows when this information might come in handy. The points below are from a book titled 'Feminology: Woman Abuse'. Author: Bassam Imam. 

Some of the points have been simplified for ease of reading. Some have been taken out as they are not according to the Indian Penal Code. Of course it's not possible to remember them all. But browsing through them will only prove to be helpful. Here you go!

1. Your personal safety and security is number one! If you were raped by a stranger in unfamiliar surroundings and left after the rape, the rapists may return for some more

2. You need immediate medical care regardless of how you feel. You may have serious medical injuries that need to be treated immediately

3. You’re understandably fearful about having a physical examination. But it is important. However, do not let anyone to exploit you further under the pretext of examination

4. Call the police or someone (family or friends, etc) who can adequately protect you from further harm 

5. During the examination you have the right to say stop at any time

6. DO NOT forget to inform the physician and nurse if you’re on medication or if you’re addicted to alcohol or other drugs; even tobacco. Furthermore, if you have alcohol or drugs in your system at the time of the examination it’s imperative that you inform hospital staff

7. If you have any suspicions about having been drugged ask the physician to check for traces of rape drugs or similar derivatives

8. If you have any food or drug allergies immediately inform the medical staff. 

9. The examiner's report can be used as evidence on your behalf. Be sure to see or get someone you trust to see what is written.

10. Make sure the physicians checks for Sexually Transmitted Diseases and gives you emergency contraception to avoid pregnancy 

11. Vaccination for Hepatitis B might be given. You may be prescribed medication for gonorrhoea, syphilis and Chlamydia

12. You really want to take a shower, throw or wash all of the affected clothing, go home and cry like a baby but don't even comb or clean your hair. DNA and other valuable evidence can be obtained from your body and clothing

13. It’s imperative that a blood test be taken

14. Ask about follow-up treatment and medications

15. Inform your family physician (if you have one) of what has happened. Ask the medical staff to send an official copy of the exam results to your physician

16. Ask if the hospital has a rape kit to simplify and quicken the process

Remember, anyone can be raped and the rapist need not be a stranger. 

Written by Neilima

No one is asking for it

It's no secret that rape is too much of a common thing. It's said that one in three women will be raped at some point in their life.  That's you, or your mother,  or your best friend. It's a terrifying fact.

There is so much I could say about the issue, but for now I’m going to focus on one specific case in Sudan. An 18 year old Ethiopian woman was lured into an empty property and raped by seven men. She was found by a police officer who took her to the police station, but she was not allowed to file a formal complaint as it was a public holiday. 

The men were convicted 6 months later, as one of them filmed the act and posted it on social media. They all received 40-100 lashes and fines. The woman, who by this stage was 9 months pregnant, had to go to court and was found guilty of committing ‘Indecent Acts’ and sentenced to a month in prison and made to pay a hefty fine. She was again not allowed to make a formal complaint about the rape, as she was under investigation for a criminal offence.

You would hope that if you were raped, there would at least be support available from the police and the justice system. But no, not only was she not supported, she was made to be the one who had done wrong. It’s certainly one way to make sure people don’t report rapes, if they know they’ll be blamed for it. It’s like the story of the policeman who gave a talk to some college students in America about how to protect themselves against rape, and he told them to just stop dressing provocatively, as they are ‘asking for it’. Do people not hear the things they say? No one is ‘asking for it’. This victim blaming cycle is ridiculous.

Sudan has been in the media a lot recently due to its apparent dire human rights situation, and this is just one issue in a whole list of others. But it’s one that deserves a minute of our time as we shake our heads and spare a thought for the hardships this poor woman is facing. It’s a terrible situation to be in that if you report a crime, you’ll end up taking blame. Come on world, get your act together.

Source:

Amnesty International, Teenage Gang-Rape Survivor in Sudan Convicted of ‘Indecent Acts’. 25 February, 2014. Available from: <http://blog.amnestyusa.org/africa/shocking-teenage-gang-rape-survivor-in-sudan-convicted-of-indecent-acts/>;

Amnesty International, Does monitoring Human Rights in Sudan Still Matter?  11 September, 2013. Available from:  <http://blog.amnestyusa.org/africa/does-monitoring-human-rights-in-sudan-still-matter/>;

Written by Jen Taylor

Middle East labor attache charged with attempted rape

By Ina Reformina, ABS-CBN News
Posted at 09/25/2013 3:06 PM | Updated as of 09/25/2013 4:42 PM

MANILA, Philippines - A male Assistant Labor Attache assigned to a Philippine Embassy in the Middle East is facing charges of attempted rape and 3 counts of abuses against chastity before the Department of Justice (DOJ) in connection with the alleged "sex-for-flight" controversy.

The official, whom the DOJ has refused to name, allegedly victimized "3 distressed female overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were seeking assistance from the Philippine Embassy."

The complaint stems from the Final Report submitted by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) which conducted a probe into the alleged scheme.

Also recommended to be charged with attempted rape and Abuses Against Chastity is the driver of the Labor Attache.

The Report was submitted to the DOJ, through Prosecutor General Claro Arellano, for appropriate action, such as the conduct of preliminary investigation, as well as to the office of Labor chief Rosalinda Baldoz for appropriate administrative proceedings and further investigation into other possible violations of labor laws.

The names of the alleged perpetrators and victims are withheld "due to the nature of the cases recommended to be filed, the DOJ said in a press statement.

Source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/09/25/13/middle-east-labor-attache-charged-rape


Contributed by Norhana Kamid

Is it the beginning of safe era for women?

It was 16th December 2012 Sunday night, when Delhi, the capital of world’s largest democratic country India witnessed a heinous crime popularly known as Nirbhaya case. Usual Sunday night became fun day night for many but for few it was the dusk of utter misery and extreme pain. The narrow lonely roads cried for mercy at the sight of the girl but no one could hear the voice. Gang rape and brutal inhumane murder of an innocent 23 year old physiotherapist student evoked rage and disgust globally. There were massive protests and campaigns within the country depicting the gravity of the crime. It wasn’t the first rape in the state but still it aroused attention of many. If statistics are to be considered, according to the National crime records bureau, registered rape cases in India have increased by approximately 900 per cent over past 4 decades. Some believe that only 1 among 100 cases is registered to the police as families have fears regarding their honour and post publicized life of their pre-traumatized child.

Nirbhaya had its concluding court session recently which was awaited by all. The punishment inflicted cannot bring the girl back but at least the wrong doers can be taught an indispensible lesson for life. Thus after 9 months of pain, all those four criminals/rapists have been sentenced excluding one who committed suicide in jail. Among the rapists, one is below 18 years of age and the other is doing distance learning graduation. None of them has a criminal record too. They hailed from poor families residing in different parts of the country and were in Delhi for earning their livelihood. They were staying in suburb area and were on party that night. They had robbed a man too before Nirbhaya and her friend boarded the bus as told by one of the rapists.

What gathers our attention is why such a crime then? Just satisfying their lust for the moment was a good enough reason or they were left with no empathy for women. We have no answers but this case trial is definitely an eye opener for criminals because the general public is definitely not going to tolerate any sort of injustice against females now. Few say that the victim has presumably gone to a place where they can be no rapes but can’t we make earth a better place for women to live in. Raise voices against such crimes and let our girls breathe freely in the air.

• Written by Dr Aakshi Kalra

Reference-

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/life-rape-and-death-in-an-indian-city/article5126706.ece   

Rape of Brazilian women

In Brazil the new Law 12.015/2009, Article 213 of the Penal Code was amended, does not bring the term "woman" but "someone", so, man, in theory, can be a victim of rape.

Rape is considered one of the most violent crimes (hate crime).

In the case of rape against minors (rape vulnerable), it is also possible to speak of pedophilia.

Crime of Rape in Brazilian Penal Code "Article 213 - Pena Solitude, 6-10 years,"

Prosecution of public private except art. 225, § 1 and 2 of the Criminal Code - the victim or his parents can not meet the costs of the proceedings if the offense is committed with abuse of parental rights, or quality of stepparent, guardian or trustee. If the victim is not more than fourteen years penal action will be public private initiative.

Currently the penalty in Brazil is 6-10 years imprisonment for the criminal, increasing to 8-12 years if there is bodily injury of the victim or if the victim has between 14-18 years old, and 12-30 years if conduct results in death.

The use of a weapon, possibly by principle consunção will be absorbed, the agent being punished only for rape or indecent assault, but this will occur since the pipes are not autonomous and independent of each other

Every 12 seconds a woman is raped in Brazil. Starting from alarming, Ana Maria Rattes, president of the State Council of Women's Rights (CEDIM), initiated the debate "Violence, abuse and sexual exploitation against women", organized on Thursday by the Institute Ary Carvalho, the capital of Rio de Janeiro.

The punishments for offenders with hardened Law No. 11.340, named Maria da Penha, and sanctioned in August. Now, the penalty of detention for crimes of domestic violence tripled was no more than a year now and can reach three. The court has 48 hours from the complaint, to remove the offender from the victim.

An emblematic case of the last days was a case of rape within the public transport "bus" in the State of Rio de Janeiro, where a teenager accused of raping and assaulting a passenger on a bus line 369 (Bangu-Carioca) continued terrorizing passengers even after raping women and stealing other people in the collective, according to the police investigation. He was apprehended days after his mother convince him to surrender.

According to one of the victims, the young man threatened to kill a passenger thinking he was a cop, even after searching him and finding no police identification. The woman said he told her to hand the passenger a pistol ammunition with which he would be killed.

"He came to send the woman take the weapon ammo, but she said she did not know how to do this. And he had already searched the passenger and knew he was not a cop. This fleeting thought until he too was raped. He acted with great wickedness, "said the officer-holder of the 17th Precinct (St. Kitts), Mauritius Luciano de Almeida.

On account of this wave of rape, women who have suffered sexual abuse, decided to join the march of the whores, where there are already many other countries this kind of demonstration against any violence against women.

The first march of the whores in Brazil took place in São Paulo, on June 4, 2011, organized by advertising curitibana Mado Lopez. After the announcement of the event by creating a Facebook page, over 6000 people attended. However, unlike the versions in other countries, only about 300 people attended, according to the count of the Military Police. That same year, began the demonstration in Recife, Belo Horizonte, Brasília and Itabuna and in 2012, on June 29, occurred the 1st March of the whores in the city of Teresina. On July 28, 2012, was the first march in São José do Rio Preto, State of Sao Paulo.

According to anthropologist Julia Zamboni, the movement is made by feminists seeking equality. "Being called a whore is a condition sexist. Men say we bitch is when we say yes to them and when we say no," he said. "You bitch is because we are free," he said. In Brazil, the march also draws attention to the number of rapes occurring in the country. Every year, approximately 15,000 women are raped.

Although there is alarming numbers of violence against women, the federal government has several projects assisting women victims of rape or sexual violence.

Anyway, freedom and justice, are an asset that needs essential conditions for it to flourish, no one lives alone. The happiness of a person is to love and be loved. We must cultivate life, denouncing all types of aggression (violence) suffered.

I conclude with the words of Paulo César Coelho:

The afternoon consumed disgusting

Hypocrite underserved leaves

In the air guilt.

Sex abrupt wicked, evil done!

Lacerated body humiliated fallen.

In gutter outrage!

Wounded dignity dying

Act terrifying! Afternoon follows

Consummate lying undead

Tearful. Legs at night

The cowardly, sneaking.

Unpunished and smiling!

The rape along with child abuse constitute acts of greater evils of mankind and only applicable in the sick mind of cowards.

Author: Lilian Bernardo, lives in São Paulo, Brazil, is a lawyer, mediator and conciliator judicial instructor alternative methods of conflict, family, business, consumer and civil.

Change the undercurrents!

On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old girl met a terrible fate on board a bus. After the six men raped her in their absolutely brutish fashion, the girl was thrown on the side of the road with her friend, left to die. Passers-by went without taking any of it into consideration, and eventually when she did get to hospital, the girl fought back bravely, but succumbed to her injuries.

To say India was angry in the aftermath is saying nothing. Protest waves flowed from all quarters, and the national capital was held siege by angry people, demanding legislative reform. The first step to that effect came when a committee was appointed to examine the changes that were to be made to the incumbent legal system. A second phase came in when some of those suggested changes were approved, and India had a tougher legal system, applying the death penalty to the offender in a rape case.

And yet, even as that was going on in the foreground, rape cases piled up across the country. Tribal women, foreign women, little girls, teenage girls and young mothers: the list only had addenda from every quarter. Why?

The flaw lies in many sides. The first flaw falls in the larger ethos of the prevailing mental attitude. A society that is disposed towards treating women as chattel, considering women as nothing more than just property that would bring money when sold under the guise of marriage, or trafficked, or even beaten up brutally within the confines of a home, cannot change just with a dose of legal reform. The undercurrents of a prevailing mindset that is so dead-set against the equality and emancipation of women needs tackling, not through legal reform, but through education. The second flaw falls in the approach to rape as a crime. Rape is not only about sex, or about lustful intentions. Rape is about the fact that a man, or a few men, believes or believe that they can have sex with any woman they want to by asserting dominance. Rape is about their faulty perception that a woman’s conduct can be “regulated” by threatening rape, or actually carrying out rape. Rape is about their ridiculous perceptions that the way a woman dresses determines if she should be raped or not – and rape is also about the continued agenda that the media and mainstream entertainment outlets continue to reiterate: that a woman is only about her body, and that she is all about being at a man’s disposal, to such an extent that the few films that are made with a woman-centric theme are considered an exception to the norm. If there needs to be a positive trend in the reduction of the instances of rape, there should necessarily be a shift in attitudes. The third major flaw falls in the lack of sufficient strength in the security sector. A robust security sector are the teeth to the paper tigers that legislations otherwise are. What use is a law if there is no implementation, and what use is there in rhetoric that professes a need for implementation if it does not establish an institution with sufficient capacity to bring the law into action.

If the incident in Delhi in December was a call for action, the recent incident in Delhi concerning the five year old is a grim reminder of how much is left to be done, and how little has already been done. It’s time to wake up, really. 

By Kirthi Gita Jayakumar

THE PHYSICAL EFFECTS OF RAPE

Rape is defined as one person forcing another, without this person's consent and using violence or threatening violence, to have intercourse or other forms of sexual activity. The same definition is applicable if the person is violated while in a vulnerable state such as sleep, unconsciousness, intoxication, physical or mental disability. Any present or previous relationship between the parties is irrelevant.

The effects of rape can be both physical/biological and psychological trauma.

Physical impact of rape

Physically documented symptoms of rape include: vaginal and anal bleeding, pain, bruises and scars on the body, irritation and tenderness in the vaginal area, and sometimes tears in the vaginal-rectal area. Others are: subsequent painful sexual intercourse, urinary tract infections, dysfunction of the hip and legs, the contraction of numerous sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS and pregnancy.

Pregnancy from rape

Pregnancy may result from rape. The rate varies between settings and depends particularly on the extent to which non-barrier contraceptives are being used.

A 1996 longitudinal study in the United States of over 4000 women followed for three years found that the national rape related pregnancy rate was 5.0% per rape among victims aged 12–45 years, producing over 32,000 pregnancies nationally among women from rape each year.

A study of adolescents in Ethiopia found that among those who reported being raped, 17% became pregnant after the rape, a figure which is similar to the 15–18% reported by rape crisis centres in Mexico.

Experience of coerced sex at an early age reduces a woman's ability to see her sexuality as something over which she has control. As a result, it is less likely that an adolescent girl who has been forced into sex will use condoms or other forms of contraception, decreasing the likelihood of her not becoming pregnant.

Sexually transmitted diseases

Rape sex can increase the risk of transmitting HIV. In forced vaginal penetration, abrasions and cuts commonly occur, thus facilitating the entry of the virus through the vaginal mucosa. Adolescent girls are particularly susceptible to HIV infection through forced sex, and even through unforced sex, because their vaginal mucous membranes have not yet acquired cellular density sufficient to provide an effective barrier that develops in the later teenage years.

For rape victims the more common consequences of sexual violence are those related to reproductive health, mental health, and social wellbeing. Though the psychological effects are potentially more life altering for the victim, the physical effects are just as adverse and are pretty much immediate.

BY Dr. CHARLES IMMANUEL AKHIMIEN

REFERENCES

Eby, K; Campbell, JC; Sullivan, CM; Davidson Ws, 2nd (1995). "Health effects of experiences of sexual violence for women with abusive partners". Health Care for Women International 16 (6): 563–576. doi:10.1080/07399339509516210. PMID 8707690.

Collett, BJ; Cordle, CJ; Stewart, CR; Jagger, C (1998). "A comparative study of women with chronic pelvic pain, chronic nonpelvic pain and those with no history of pain attending general practitioners". British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology 105 (1): 87–92. doi:10.1111/j.1471-0528.1998.tb09356.x. PMID 9442168.

Yuzpe, A. Albert; Smith, R. Percival and Rademaker, Alfred W. (April 1982). "A Multicenter Clinical Investigation Employing ethinyl estradiol combined with dl-norgestrel as a Postcoital Contraceptive agent". Fertility and Sterility 37 (4).

Wake up!

On December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old girl met a terrible fate on board a bus. After the six men raped her in their absolutely brutish fashion, the girl was thrown on the side of the road with her friend, left to die. Passers-by went without taking any of it into consideration, and eventually when she did get to hospital, the girl fought back bravely, but succumbed to her injuries.

To say India was angry in the aftermath is saying nothing. Protest waves flowed from all quarters, and the national capital was held siege by angry people, demanding legislative reform. The first step to that effect came when a committee was appointed to examine the changes that were to be made to the incumbent legal system. A second phase came in when some of those suggested changes were approved, and India had a tougher legal system, applying the death penalty to the offender in a rape case.

And yet, even as that was going on in the foreground, rape cases piled up across the country. Tribal women, foreign women, little girls, teenage girls and young mothers: the list only had addenda from every quarter. 

Why?

The flaw lies in many sides. The first flaw falls in the larger ethos of the prevailing mental attitude. A society that is disposed towards treating women as chattel, considering women as nothing more than just property that would bring money when sold under the guise of marriage, or trafficked, or even beaten up brutally within the confines of a home, cannot change just with a dose of legal reform. The undercurrents of a prevailing mindset that is so dead-set against the equality and emancipation of women needs tackling, not through legal reform, but through education. The second flaw falls in the approach to rape as a crime. Rape is not only about sex, or about lustful intentions. Rape is about the fact that a man, or a few men, believes or believe that they can have sex with any woman they want to by asserting dominance. 

Rape is about their faulty perception that a woman’s conduct can be “regulated” by threatening rape, or actually carrying out rape. Rape is about their ridiculous perceptions that the way a woman dresses determines if she should be raped or not – and rape is also about the continued agenda that the media and mainstream entertainment outlets continue to reiterate: that a woman is only about her body, and that she is all about being at a man’s disposal, to such an extent that the few films that are made with a woman-centric theme are considered an exception to the norm. If there needs to be a positive trend in the reduction of the instances of rape, there should necessarily be a shift in attitudes. The third major flaw falls in the lack of sufficient strength in the security sector. A robust security sector are the teeth to the paper tigers that legislations otherwise are. What use is a law if there is no implementation, and what use is there in rhetoric that professes a need for implementation if it does not establish an institution with sufficient capacity to bring the law into action.

If the incident in Delhi in December was a call for action, the recent incident in Delhi concerning the five year old is a grim reminder of how much is left to be done, and how little has already been done. It’s time to wake up, really. 

By Kirthi Gita Jayakumar

Rape and Social Media

It has been in the news lately of incidents where young rape victims have been committing suicide. They were not only embarrassed by the awful situation they endured, but also because their pain and horror was put on social media sites by their attackers for others to see.

This has become a growing trend as of late. Young people posting pictures or videos of young women, who are usually unconscious, during rape. These forms of media are being texted throughout schools and communities. It not only makes the victims feel a great amount of shame, but also gives a sense of power and control to the attacker over the wounded. This control can turn other people against them as well. This has been seen in the recent suicides of Rehtaeh Parsons and Audrie Pott. The two girls took their life, when the harassment of their peers after photos were shared of them being raped was too much.

Access to the photos/video of these events gives those that were not involved the opportunity to judge what happened themselves. “She deserved it” or “she was asking for” are common reactions when those pictures were viewed. It may not look like what the students knew of rape to be, so rather than chastising the young men responsible, they bullied and attacked the victim. No matter what it looks like to someone else, in the end, rape is rape.

With broadcasting these horrors on social media, it also shows how our younger generation is changing how certain events and attitudes are perceived. The lack of compassion in our current society combined with the explicit sexuality in our culture has created a younger generation that finds it acceptable to treat others in this humiliating way. As the issue of rape and violence against women is becoming a constant in the media, it is important that the concerned citizenry, but also social networking sites, i.e. Facebook and Twitter, take action. There has to be consequences for those that play with the vulnerability of a human life.  

By Megan Bird

Sources-

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2013/04/12/cyberbullying-sexual-assault-suicide-san-jose-arrest-teens/2076825/

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-impact-of-social-media-on-rape-2013-4

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/facebook/9994354/Facebook-advertisers-enraged-by-rape-ads.html

http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/10/justice/canada-teen-suicide/index.html

Every 22 minutes a woman is raped in India

Rape is a pandemic phenomenon in India. The victims were largely Indian girls, and even foreign tourists. The phenomenon ultimately triggered a wave of anger in the streets. Of these events is the most prominent incident of gang-rape of a woman on a bus, in New Delhi, India. The victim died last December. This was followed by the case of rape of a Swiss tourist, in India, who was abducted while she shared with her husband.

Government statistics show that rape occurs every 22 minutes in India. So that encouraged the parliament to approve legislation to aggravate punishment for perpetrators of rape and criminalizing anything done to harass women. It is currently awaiting approval from the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, to begin implementation of the new legislation.

Women's rights activists of India, Rotchera Gupta said that "courage girl who was raped on December 16 has affected the community. So the dozens of men and women in India rose to demand an immediate end to all forms of attacks on women. And Parliament had responded to their demands." The girl in Delhi has become a symbol of the everyday suffering of women in India, and is a symbol of catastrophic magnitude faced by rape victims in India.

A student demonstration of one of the participants said that "today's protest in the context of specific daily life of Indian women. Because the father had contacted me through the phone more than six times a day to ensure my safety, that I will get home safely. " Although now a lot of rape cases are reported every day in the Indian media, but it is not yet clear whether it is evidence of an increasing number of the same crime in general. However, there is no doubt that it has increased awareness, because in fact that is not a few Indian women who have had the courage to express their experiences.

By Bella Nabilla

Source : http://hizbut-tahrir.or.id/2013/03/26/setiap-22-menit-wanita-diperkosa-di-india/

Rape is Genocide

When you think of genocide, the first things that probably come to mind are visuals from the Holocaust, Rwanda and Bosnia, among others. Although the conventional notion is to understand that genocide implies “mass killing”, there is more to it. By definition, genocide includes anything that is done to prevent the ability of a segment of population to procreate – which is what the Eugenics movement was.

By extending that definition, genocide also includes rape and sexual violence.

What makes sexual violence so common on every warfront and women the easiest targets is the fact that for those that carry it out, rape and sexual violence is cheap, easy and extremely effective.  Armed groups, combatants and non-combatants use rape as a means to terrorize and control women and communities. Subjecting women to sexual violence stigmatizes the woman, besides harming her physically and psychologically. Families turn these women out of their homes. Men refuse to marry victims of sexual violence. When women are spurned the backbone of a societal structure is broken.

Sexual violence is calculated, brutal and absolutely bereft of humanity. Using sexual violence as a modus operandi in warfare is intricately woven with the hegemonic desire for power. Sexual violence in conflict is a preferred method to reinforce gendered and political hierarchies. Rape is cheap, easy and extremely effective. It is vital to ensure that such widespread violence is neither perceived as a “by-product” of war, nor deemed a mere practice characteristic of combatants. Sexual violence has been perpetrated by nearly every entity, not just the combatants themselves. 

Genocide is carried out with an intent to destroy in whole or in part, a national or an ethnic group, through a) Killing members of the group; b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; and e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

In the Akayesu case the Trial Chamber of the ICC ruled that acts of rape can form an integral part of the process of destruction of a group. “These rapes resulted in physical and psychological destruction of Tutsi women, their families and their communities. Sexual violence was an integral part of the process of destruction, specifically targeting Tutsi women and specifically contributing to their destruction and to the destruction of the Tutsi group as a whole.”

As it stands presently, it is only a conclusion consequent to interpretation. If the law against Genocide could be expanded to explicitly include Genocide within its fold, it would create a watertight legislative provision that can ensure that perpetrators of sexual violence would not be let off lightly, but would be tried for Genocide. 

Types of Rape

Rape is a crime of a sexual nature that is committed by one or more people to force someone to have sex in the form of penetration of the vagina or anus with a penis or other body force in the form of violence or threat of violence. The following outlines the types of rape:

1.       Rape by Boyfriend

This type of forcible rape is by someone known to us without the consent of the woman herself. There are many instances of rape by boyfriend experienced by women in the world. – but merely because of the fact that it is committed by a boyfriend, it is often not construed as rape even if forcible.

2.       Rape of Women

A rape victim is usually a woman. In the United States about 1 in 6 women experience rape. Female rape victims are usually more embarrassed to report as a moral burden and embarrassment they face when reporting rape.

3.       Rape with Drugs

This is where the rapists give medicine or drugs to make his victims drunk, passed out or asleep, making it easier to commit rape.  

4.       Mass Rape

This is rape by a group of people who attacks someone. About 10% or 20% of cases of rape are carried out as mass rapes. In some countries the mass rapes are more serious than rape committed by individuals, and is thus condemned.  

5.       Rape of Boys

Not only women, but men also experience rape. About 1 out of 33 men experienced rape in the world. Although the rape of men considered it strange or impossible as it is usually men who commit rape.

6.       Rape of Children

Rape is a form of sexual abuse of a child, whether performed by a father, uncle, aunt, mother, grandfather or other relatives. This usually affects the psychological bent of a child, and causes trauma.

7.       Rape by a husband / wife

Rape can also occur in a married couple. In many countries it is considered unlikely because two people are married to have sex anytime. In fact, many husbands who force their wives to have sex are committing an act of marital rape.

Source : http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pemerkosaan

Responses to VAW incidents: Part 1

On the 16^th of December, 2012, a brutal rape would take place on a Delhi bus that would shock India and the international community. The attack and gruesome death of an anonymous, yet now internationally famous 21 year old woman caused violent uprisings in the nation, provoked a reaction from the Secretary General of the United Nations and sparked protests in Paris, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The incident led many women to closely examine the roles they played in their own societies, and re-examine a question we often take for granted: how far have we come, as women, in terms of respect and safety in our countries? To answer this question, a survey was sent to 7 different young women living and working in some of the world’s most gender-progressive countries – Canada, the United States, the U.K, Bermuda and Argentina - to examine their views on the status of women in their countries. This is the first in a series of posts discussing their responses.       

Buenos Aires is a bustling, metropolis city known for its flavour, its passion and also for its women. Argentine women are famous for their beauty, their temperament and their strength. Headed by Cristina Kircher, and the home of the female icon Evita Peron, Argentina has never shied from embracing the power in its female population. Yet somehow, simultaneously, Argentina is known to have a culture of machismo that pervades throughout the city’s social sphere. Twenty-five year old Romina Insausti has lived in countries such as Brazil, Jamaica and Africa and is currently studying in Argentina. Her global experience combined with her in depth knowledge of the Argentinean culture placed her in an ideal position to shed light on the role women play in her home country.     

Professionally, she feels women in Argentina are unhindered by their gender. “Some [women] are expected to become presidents; some are expected to become housewives. But all women have the same possibilities of educational enhancement given that education up to university level in this country is free.” Yet she also notes that women’s equality in the workplace does not always translate to gender equality across the board. Women in Southern American nations still face the dangers of sexual and physical abuse that mar developing countries. Continues Insausti: “In the working class, although they have the same possibilities, women are usually the ones that stay at home while the men work. These women are usually taken advantage of.  It’s common for these men to physically abuse them and cheat on them (i.e. have sexual relations with prostitutes and other women that aren’t their wives). But the real problem that women are facing right now in this country is human trafficking and physical and sexual abuse. Women from the lower and working classes are mostly talked about when it comes to human trafficking, but there are countless women in the middle and upper-middle classes that are kidnapped on their way to work or school and never heard of again. Some are included in human trafficking; some are simply raped and murdered. It is known that police, judges and other people that are supposed to protect people’s rights are involved in human trafficking. Many of the loved ones of the women that go missing try to investigate their cases by themselves because the authorities won’t do their job.           

In addition, it is very common to see cases of women that lose their lives or getting very hurt being beaten and burned by their (ex)boyfriends/(ex)lovers/(ex)husbands/ (throwing some kind of alcohol at them and setting them on fire is very common now). There are high levels of insecurity in this society and women are mostly the main target.”            

Conversely, in the U.K., Caitlin Field, a charming and intelligent tomboy from the University of Edinburgh, relates her feelings about the status of women in her country, across the world, the United Kingdom. While Insausti states she feels relatively unsafe in her country, suffering verbal abuse on an almost daily basis, Field notes that though she feels physically safe. Yet the psychological bias against women in the U.K. is an unseen but powerful prejudice that affects women in the workplace and at home.

“In my society,”, states Field, “both as a UK resident and a citizen of the western world, I do feel that

there are huge social expectations that put undue pressure on women. Often, this pressure is the kind of insidious pressure that creeps in to people’s daily lives, like the pressure to “lose those last few pounds”, courtesy of every women’s publication on the newsstands, or the pressure to decide between career and family satisfaction, as is still depressingly common during job interviews.”       

Field describes her personal situation during university, when she felt pressured to conform to certain set roles, in spite of her own personal preference: “...it often depends on what “kind” of woman I was presenting myself to be. For instance, if I wore eyeliner and tighter-fitting clothes, I was treated by my peers as having more of a voice, compared with if I turned up to a class in baggy jeans and a hoodie, with no makeup, I was often not paid much attention to at all. That’s not to say that I was sexually objectified when wearing tighter-fitting clothes, just that I feel like people were better able to “code” me appropriately – something like “tight clothes, woman, fulfilling womanly duties to be feminine, yep, I can deal with that” – compared with when I wasn’t making any real effort to appear feminine, which seemed to make people uncomfortable and confused. In that situation, I become kind of neither fish nor fowl – too feminine to be “one of the guys”, and too masculine to be “one of the girls” – meaning that often the only way I was able to really feel like I was communicating with people was to “femme up”.

The contrast between Insausti and Field are enlightening. In two very developed countries, both which offer university level education to women and enforce gender-equality laws, there is a significant difference in the breed of challenge faced by women. Discrimination comes in many forms; both physical and psychological, and the absence of one does not necessarily mean the absence of the other. This, however, is not to state that either woman does not recognize the progress that has been made in their own countries in comparison to others - both Insausti and Field accede to their being a difference in the severity of problems faced by different countries, with Field stating: “..it seems that there are a great many other societies in which women are forced into vastly different roles, with much more of a focus on motherhood and marital duties than freedom of self. The shooting of Malala Yousafzai for speaking out in favour of a woman’s right to education is a clear example of the vast difference between the oppression that I feel women face in the UK, and the oppression that women face in other societies...”     

Simultaneously, however, it is important to take to heart the lessons of the rape in India. A nation’s culture deeply affects the biases and prejudices of its citizens. India, for example, has a long history of gender discrimination with which it must grapple, and the rising prevalence of women in the workplace or in professions does not indicate that this underlying cultural bias has been adequately dealt with. At the same time, an absence of sexual objectification or verbal assault does not mean that a society considers its women equal, as pointed out by Field. To ignore discrimination or gender inequality, in any form, as harmless, or to accept the progress made to the modern day as ‘good enough’ is a passive acceptance of misogyny.  

Farahnaz Mohammed