Systemic Use of Sexual Violence as a Weapon in Armed Conflicts A Comparative Study of Kashmir and the Democratic Republic of Congo

Abstract

The research aims to find out the causes of the prevailing menace of systemic sexual violence in armed conflicts. Rape has been executed as a tactic in several armed conflicts and has been explained as a weapon by Realist and Feminist perspectives. This thesis explores the reasons for systemic use of sexual violence as a weapon and uncovers how and why it was used in the cases of Kashmir and the Democratic Republic of Congo. For the purpose of finding out the reasons for systemic sexual violence, it was observed through the combined perspective of Realism and Feminism. The study explains the distinction between the two schools in context of systemic use of sexual violence, as well as the merger of two to analyze the problem. Both perspectives are explained tlu'ough an inquiry into the case of Kashmir and DRC. Fmiher, the study explores the patterns of sexual violence in three time periods - Cold War, Post-Cold War and Post 9111 Era. The main argument suggests that systemic sexual violence is an outcome of power politics between the states, when they engage in armed conflicts. This is exacerbated by the misogynist structure of the societies which are targeted, as well the patriarchal mindset of the state which executes sexual violence. These claims are examined in war rape that occurred in Kashmir and DRC. The thesis also studies the role of the United Nations, which has not been able to effectively solve the issue of systemic sexual violence. The two cases are compared based on the patriarchal system of societies, and their responses to the UN resolutions regarding systemic sexual violence, which has been negligible and ineffective in both cases. The conclusion, thus, provides reasoning for the issue of systemic sexual violence, why it has worsened despite the resolutions of the UN, Geneva Conventions, and the Protocols, and why the issue prevails in its worst form in Kashmir and the Democratic Republic of Congo