(De)legitimizing rape as a weapon of war: patriarchy, narratives and the African Union

dc.contributor.advisorPretorius, Joelien
dc.contributor.authorLangeveldt, Veleska
dc.date.accessioned2015-04-16T09:14:16Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-05-03T09:36:33Z
dc.date.available2015-04-16T09:14:16Z
dc.date.available2024-05-03T09:36:33Z
dc.date.issued2014
dc.descriptionMagister Administrationis - MAdminen_US
dc.description.abstractThe African continent has over the past 40 years witnessed a continued scourge of violent conflict and human rights abuses. These conflicts have significantly undermined the social, political, and economic prosperity of African citizens. Additionally, women and children are particularly affected by these conflicts. Women and children are regarded as ‘the most vulnerable’ as they often become the targets of sexual abuse by the enemy. The African Union (AU) is primarily responsible for the resolution of conflicts on the continent. It professes to be committed to the prevention of human rights abuses and the protection of African women (and children) during armed conflicts. It has thus developed an array of mechanisms, protocols, and instruments to address the exploitation and sexual abuse of women during conflict periods. These instruments include: The Constitutive Act of the AU (2000); The Solemn Declaration of Gender Equality in Africa (2003); the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa- ACHPRWA (2004); and the Protocol relating to the Peace and Security Council. In this research project, I consider whether the narratives used in these AU documents sufficiently and explicitly address the use of rape as a strategic weapon during armed conflicts; or whether these narratives inadvertently contribute to a culture that perpetuates war-time rape. My analysis shows that these AU documents deal with war-time rape in very vague and euphemistic terms. Although gender discrimination, sexual violence, exploitation, discrimination, and harmful practices against women are condemned, the delegitimization of rape as a weapon of war is not specifically discussed. This allows for varying interpretations of AU protocols, including interpretations which may diminish the severity of strategic rape. This has lead me to propose that the narratives used in these AU protocols and related documents draw on patriarchy, perpetuate patriarchy, and thus inadvertently perpetuates a culture that perpetuates the use of rape as a weapon of waren_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10566/12806
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherUniversity of the Western Capeen_US
dc.rights.holderUniversity of the Western Capeen_US
dc.subjectAfricaen_US
dc.subjectwomenen_US
dc.subjectrapeen_US
dc.subjectweaponsen_US
dc.subjectdelegitimizingen_US
dc.subjectarmed conflicten_US
dc.subjectnarrativeen_US
dc.subjectnormsen_US
dc.subjectsecurity studiesen_US
dc.subjectsocial constructionen_US
dc.subjectfeminismen_US
dc.subjectchemical weaponsen_US
dc.subjectanti-personnel landminesen_US
dc.subjectAfrican Union (AU)en_US
dc.subjectPeace and Security Council (PSC)en_US
dc.subjectRegional Economic Communities (RECs)en_US
dc.title(De)legitimizing rape as a weapon of war: patriarchy, narratives and the African Unionen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Langeveldt_MAdmin_2014.pdf
Size:
14.88 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Thesis
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.62 KB
Format:
Plain Text
Description: