During a UN-sponsored seminar on sexual violence against men and boys in conflict Prof. Lara Stemple of UCLA discussed some of the research gaps that exist in the are of male-directed sexual violence.

2. This talk will explore:
 Understandings &
assumptions about
gender
 How these shape our
response to sexual
violence in conflict,
including research
 Questions about what
research to prioritize

3. Definitionsof Sex and
Gender
 Sex: biological; male
and female.
 Gender: social
expectations for
men and women
and the unequal
power relationships
that can result.

4. Traditional gender stereotypes
Men
 Naturally warlike
 Aggressive
 Strong
 Invulnerable
 Always want sex
Women
 Naturally peaceful
 Passive
 Weak
 Sensitive
 Reluctantly agree to
sex

5. War & masculinity
 Ideal soldier maps on to ideas about
masculinity (strong, brave)
 Soldiers called “girls” when failing to
perform
 The more “macho” the military job, the
more likely women are barred from it
 Even when men fall as victims, viewed
as heroic masculinity

6. Gender policing occurs in
different ways:
 mockery
 pathologizing

7.  discrimination
 violence (including sexual violence)
 social pressure

8. Extreme manifestations of
gender are often celebrated

9. Gender
nonconformity is
newsworthy.

10. Our ideas about
gender are so
fixed, that
flipping them is
the story itself.

11. Ideas about gender are especially
rigid concerning:
 armed conflict
 sexual violence

12. Traditional
gendered
narratives are
found in
international law,
especially in
response to
sexual violence.

13. International Human Rights Law
(Including treaties, conference documents,
resolutions and declarations)
 Confuse the terms women and gender.
 “Gender based violence” is defined as
“violence against women.”
 Male rape is ignored, even when
gender-based (e.g., perpetrators exert
control, victims often feminized).

14. Security Council
Resolution 1325 (2000)
 “Calls on all parties to armed conflict to
take special measures to protect
women and girls from gender-based
violence, particularly rape and other
forms of sexual abuse…”
 Subsequent SCR’s on sexual violence
focus on women and children:
○ 1694(2006)
○ 1820(2008)
○ 1888(2009) a bit more inclusive
○ 1889(2009)
○ 1960(2010) more inclusive

15. Security Council
Resolution 2106 (2013)
 Noting with concern that sexual violence in
armed conflict and post-conflict situations
disproportionately affects women and girls,
as well as groups that are particularly
vulnerable or may be specifically targeted,
while also affecting men and boys and
those secondarily traumatized as forced
witnesses of sexual violence against family
members; and emphasizing that acts of
sexual violence in such situations not only
severely impede the critical contributions
of women to society, but also impede
durable peace and security as well as
sustainable development.

16. Gender Inclusivity as Feminist
Intervention
 Over-emphasis on
female victimhood &
ideas that women are
“noble, pure, passive
& ignorant.”
 Reinforcing male
invincibility is bad for
women.
 Villains versus
damsels in distress

17. Data about sexual violence
 Globally, about 3%
of men and 13% of
women have
experienced rape
(meta analysis).
 MDSV data
summary: p. 14-19
of UCB, RLP report
 SV is underreported
everywhere, in all
contexts.

18. Wartime sexual violence
against men found in:
 Former Yugoslavia
 Croatia
 Sri Lanka
 Iran
 Iraq
 Greece
 El Salvador
 Chile
 Congo
 Sudan
 Rwanda
 and elsewhere, see
lovely map!

19. Why are male victims missed?
 Assumptions that
males aren’t SV
victims
 Health providers look
for physical trauma
 Victims don’t come
forward due to stigma,
shame, etc.
 Laws not inclusive,
even persecutory

20. Conflict-related sexual violence in Liberia
(Johnson et al., JAMA, 2008)
 42% of female and
32% of male
combatants
 9% of female non-
combatants and 7%
of male non-
combatants

21. Conflict-related sexual violence in Congo
(Johnson et al., JAMA, 2010)
 30% of women and
22% of men
reported conflict-
related sexual
violence
 Other studies look at
men or women

22. Worldwide, female soldiers face
pressure to fulfill conflicting gender roles.

23. Female perpetrators
 Public fixation with Lynddie
England due to her flouting of
gender roles at Abu Ghraib
 Lawry DRC: 41% of women
and 10% of men said
perpetrator was female.
 US juvenile detention: 94%
of boys and girls reported
female abuser.
 Thorny yet important for
women’s rights advocates.

24. Sexual violence is not always about enemy engagement.
UN peacekeeping forces have been charged with
committing sexual violence against civilians.

25. US Department of Defense
Data on Sexual Assault in the
Military
 Female recruits far more
likely to be raped by
fellow soldier than killed
in combat.
 Females are more likely
abused.
 Most abuse victims are
male.

26. Framing & Methods Matter: SV in
US
 184,390 female
incidents of rape/sexual
assault: NCVS
household survey
 949,821 male incidents
of sexual victimization of
inmates, juveniles: BJS
 1.270 million women
and 1.267 million men
reported nonconsensual
sex: CDC household
survey. Rape prioritized.

27. Definitional Challenges in
Research
 Emphasis on
penetration of
victim/rape vs.
sexual victimization
 Definitions reflect
preconceived ideas
 Jargon rather than
colloquial
 Multiple identities
(sexual orientation,
civilian/combatant)

28. How to tailor survey
instruments for men?
 Behaviorally specific
questions
 Numerous questions
 Self-administered
surveys
 Confidentiality
 Screen everyone:
normalization

29. Research needs:
 Quantitative (gender inclusive)
 Qualitative (gender specific)
 Prevention (counterfactual challenge,
donor preference for victims)
 Screening (needed earlier)
 Treatment/healing (scale up care)
 Community response (cultural specificity)
 Access to justice (safe, non-traumatizing)

30. Research pitfalls:
 Gendered & heteronormative
assumptions
 Lack of immediacy
 Re-traumatizing victims
 Lack of care following disclosure
 Frameworks (i.e., crime versus health)
 Methods that inhibit disclosure

31. Can UN and civil society be gender-sensitive and gender-
inclusive?
A gender analysis is still needed for MDSV.
Open doors: LGBTI, HIV/AIDS, children, other strategies?

32. Lara Stemple
stemple@law.ucla.edu

33. International law neglected women’s rights at first.
Women’s rights organizations used sexual violence to
garner world attention to the plight of women.

34. Limited Empirical Data
 Summarized in pp.
14-18 of Berkeley
Law & Refugee Law
Project document
 Almost all U.S. states
 Many national laws
around the world
Sex-neutral does not
mean gender-blind.

35. Ignoring sexual violence against men:
∙ Is inaccurate.
∙ Promotes the idea that there’s one way to “be a
man.”
∙ Creates a feminist dilemma.
∙ Leaves victims in the shadows. No one takes
action.