Abstract
This article will provide a synoptic historical outline of international criminal law (ICL) from a gender perspective. An effort is made to highlight the landmark stages in the evolution of the ICL, particularly in its treatment of rape and other sexual crimes perpetrated against women during armed conflict. For this purpose, a critical examination of Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals, criminal tribunals for Yugoslavia and Rwanda as well as Special Court for Sierra Leone, and the International Criminal Court is attempted. Endeavour is to outline the gender and sexual crimes jurisprudence developed by the above mentioned international criminal tribunals as well as courts, and then to examine its effectiveness in prosecuting crimes of rape and sexual violence carried out against women. An analysis of what might have gone wrong within the ICL in dealing with rape and crimes of sexual nature is also attempted.
Highlights
In spite of the fact that the United Nations (UN) Charter in its preamble urges us to protect the future generations from the great affliction of war (United Nations [UN], 1945), we are witnessing a multiplication in cases of armed conflicts
Despite the widespread use of rape and other forms of sexual violence as a weapon of armed conflict, it was not prosecuted for a long time under international law generally and international criminal law (ICL)
Sexual violence was a concomitant effect of armed conflict and was treated more as crime against women’s honour than crime constituting violence against an individual
Summary
In spite of the fact that the United Nations (UN) Charter in its preamble urges us to protect the future generations from the great affliction of war (United Nations [UN], 1945), we are witnessing a multiplication in cases of armed conflicts. The UN Security Council in its Resolution 1820 (2008) on Women and Peace and Security recognised the increasing use of sexual violence against women as war tactic to exploit and disgrace members of community or ethnic group, and often such tactics continue to persist even after the armed conflict gets over (UNSCR 1820, 2008). In this background, this article traverses the history of international criminal law’s (ICL) response to crimes of sexual violence committed during an armed conflict.
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