Objectify This

As The Austrailian reports, “In his remarks, UN chief Ban Ki-moon stressed the world body was “profoundly committed to its zero-tolerance policy against sexual exploitation or abuse by our own personnel”.”

“”Violence against women has reached unspeakable and pandemic proportions in some societies attempting to recover from conflict,” he said.”

The BBC notes that China, Russia, Indonesia and Vietnam expressed reservations about the universalized classification of rape as a weapon of war, but in the end, the entire Security Council voted unanimously to condemn rape.

While it’s good to hear that the U.N. is no longer turning a blind eye to the problem of rape, it’s unclear whether this resolution will have many consequences, especially considering that in the past, U.N. Peacekeepers have engaged in rape and pedophilia and employed child prostitutes, according to the Washington Post and evidence gathered by blogger Michelle Malkin, both in 2005.

Since the Security Council stands little chance of stopping violence in wars themselves, those of us outside of war zones are left to question what consequences the new classification of rape has. The Council is clearly trying to move in the right direction, but the use of the word “unspeakable” in connection with discussions of rape reiterates the old equations of rape with impurity and shame.

Surely, feminists everywhere are celebrating: rape has been recognized as the grievous crime it truly is, encouraging the decline of rape culture and the cultivation of a more woman-friendly global community. Yet does this mean that we need to view gender relations as a form of war? Is this a productive way to examine the issue? Clearly, this is an issue that deserves greater examination, although the ruling is a good start.

To the right is six year old Mapendo, a Congolese girl who survived rape during war and is now being given a ten-year scholarship by The Goma Student Fund.