Military Sexual Violence Research Articles

Emotions in the making: sexual violence in the Japanese empire, 1937–1945

ABSTRACT This article applies the history of emotions lens to study the emotions experienced by the ‘comfort women’ in the Japanese Empire. Emotions have been a long-neglected aspect in the study of military sexual violence. The article examines how a mélange of positive and negative emotions enabled those women to exercise some limited agency in a confined and tightly regulated space and, in some rare cases, a rather fair degree of autonomy outside of the confined space. By unravelling the varied textures of interactions between sexual violence and emotions, I argue that affective attachment and intimate relations developed in the confined sites of sexual exploitation formed a kind of strategic intimacy that enables those individuals to exercise limited forms, and a finite amount, of agency. Further, the article utilises sources produced from the perspectives of the victimised women and imperial regulators. Those angles investigate emotions expressed through, and embedded in, dynamic power relationships. The dual perspectives bring out gendered experiences of emotions and also reveal a disparate set of nuanced emotions due to positionality. The article therefore offers a critical analysis of the interrelationships among sexual violence, state power, and a particular set of emotions as a form of power and resistance.

「군사법원법」개정에 따른 성폭력 피해자 보호 개선방안에 관한 연구 : 법규 및 지침 분석을 중심으로

As the number of cases of military sexual violence increases, the conflict between the scope of application by status and the laws related to military sexual violence is very important for protecting victims of sexual violence in the military. However, after the revision of the “Military Court Act”, a systematic review of personnel laws related to victims following the transfer of military sexual assault cases to the private sector and discussions on reorganization of the laws were insufficient.
 Accordingly, this study focuses on the revised ‘Military Court Act’,‘Military Personnel Act’, ‘Military Civil Servant Personnel Act’,‘Framework Act on the Status and Service of Soldiers’,‘State Public Officials Act’ and ‘Framework Act on Prevention of Violence against Women’ related to the protection of victims of military sexual violence , ‘Sexual Violence Prevention and Victim Protection Act’, 'Military Criminal Act', such as ‘Enforcement Decree of the Framework Act on the Status of Soldiers’, 'Military Criminal Act', 8 related laws,‘Enforcement Decree of the Framework Act on the Status of Soldiers’,'Enforcement Decree of the Military Civil Servant Personnel Act',‘Unit Management Instruction’, 2 Presidential Decrees and 1 Administrative rule data were analyzed. Through review of related laws and regulations, we reviewed the conflicting limits of the scope of application by status and reporting obligations, and analyzed the 'Secondary Victimization Prevention Guidelines' of 9 government agencies, additional provisions of specific and active secondary victimization prevention guidelines for the protection of victims of sexual violence were discussed. Based on this, measures to improve the laws and guidelines related to the protection of victims of military sexual violence were presented, and through reorganization of related laws and regulations in the future, the unification of military sexual violence personnel related laws and regulations and countermeasures that reflected the special characteristics of the military were discussed.
 This study objectively analyzes the application of personnel laws and regulations for victims of sexual violence through the transfer of military sexual violence to the private sector after the revision of the 'Military Court Act' and objectively analyzes the problem of conflicting obligations in the event of a sexual violence incident. It is meaningful in that it was discussed to prepare measures to improve protection.

RESILIENCY AS A PROCESS: A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION INTO U.S. VETERANS’ EXPERIENCES AGING WITH HIV

Abstract U.S. military Veterans aging with HIV represent a unique special population. The aim of this qualitative study was to investigate risk and protective factors associated with Veterans’ ability to age well with HIV. Participants included 25 Veterans (≥ age 50) participating in the Veterans Aging Cohort Study who were recruited from the Atlanta Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center. This study conducted semi-structured interviews, social network mapping, and sociodemographic and health surveys. Participants ranged in age from 50 to 72, with a mean age of 59. Most (80%) were male, and more than half (60%) were African American. Findings showed that many participants experienced adversity in childhood or early adulthood, including military sexual violence, childhood abuse, and non-military domestic violence, as well as harassment based on sexual identity. Many also had histories of substance abuse. Although military life provided stability for some, most experienced some form of instability after leaving the service, including financial difficulties and loss of valued military ties. Timing of diagnosis, whether in the military or after the military, impacted resiliency. Receiving an HIV diagnosis was an important turning point in participants’ lives characterized by either maladaptive (e.g., suicide ideation) or therapeutic (e.g., health promoting behaviors) coping strategies. Positive social support, including close relationships many developed with providers at the VA HIV clinic, was an important protective factor. The sample experienced cumulative life events that shaped their ability to age with HIV. Findings have important implications for interventions to promote Veterans’ ability to age well with HIV.

Sexual compulsivity, erectile dysfunction, and suicidality among male survivors of military sexual violence.

Although military sexual trauma (MST) is associated with an increased risk of suicide, suicide attempts, and suicidal ideation among service members and veterans, there is limited knowledge regarding the mechanisms of MST and suicidality among men. The current study examined whether MST was associated with sexual compulsivity and/or erectile dysfunction and if these, in turn, explained elevated suicidal thoughts and the likelihood of engaging in future suicidal behavior after accounting for mental health, military, and demographic characteristics. Service members and veterans who reported their gender as male (N = 508) were recruited via social media and completed online self-report measures assessing MST, erectile dysfunction, sexual compulsivity, suicidal ideation frequency, and the likelihood of engaging in future suicidal behavior. Path analysis was used to examine the study hypotheses. In total, 67 participants (13.2%) reported a history of MST; of these individuals, 27 (40.3%) reported suicidal ideation in the past 12 months, and 29 (43.9%) reported an increased likelihood of engaging in future suicidal behavior. MST was associated with increased sexual compulsivity, which, in turn, predicted more frequent suicidal ideation as well as a higher self-reported likelihood of engaging in future suicidal behavior. MST was associated with higher levels of erectile dysfunction, but erectile dysfunction was not associated with suicidal ideation in the adjusted model. Although the data were cross-sectional, precluding determinations of causality, the results support assessing and intervening with regard to sexual compulsivity to mitigate the risk for suicide-related outcomes among men who experience MST.

“She Clearly Thought That Something Bad Had Happened to Her”: How Military Lawyers Construct Narratives of Victim Legitimacy and Perceived Harm in Sexual Assault Cases

It has been well established that survivors of sexual assault are revictimized as they navigate the civilian criminal justice system. Significantly less is known, however, about how sexual violence is navigated within the military justice system. In this study, we use qualitative interviews with military lawyers about sexual assault cases to explore their constructions of victim legitimacy. Lawyers create a distinction between perceived and actual harm done to a victim and perpetuate the notion that victims falsely accuse men of sexual violence. Through these discursive strategies, lawyers suggest that the issue of military sexual violence is inflated. Finally, lawyers blame the institutional structure of the military for teaching victimization to young women. This helps them explain why victims who they do not perceive as legitimate report sexual violence. These findings emphasize the need for further inquiry into how those working in the military justice system perceive and interact with victims.

Why Do Military Officers Condone Sexual Violence? A General Theory of Commander Tolerance

Abstract Why do commanders tolerate sexual violence by their subordinates? Commander tolerance allows military sexual violence (MSV) to persist in times of peace, war, and post-conflict peacekeeping. However, most of the previous studies on MSV have focused on perpetrators’ criminal motives while neglecting the role of commander tolerance. In this article, I offer a tripartite general theory of commander tolerance that systematically weaves together the diverse conditions under which commanders tolerate MSV at the micro, meso, and macro levels of social scientific inquiry. Toward this end, I build on the conventional principal–agent model of MSV but crucially depart from its core constructs to create a dynamic multi-commander theoretical framework. The theory represents the most rigorous explanation of commander tolerance to date and offers practical implications for military justice systems in terms of MSV. Placing commander tolerance at the center of studies on military violence opens an array of new avenues for research.

Sexual Violence in Military Service Members/Veterans Individual and Interpersonal Outcomes Associated with Single and Multiple Exposures to Civilian and Military Sexual Violence.

Sexual harassment and violence is a grave public health concern and risk for revictimization increases following initial exposure. Studies of sexual revictimization in military samples are generally limited to women and are focused on rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with no examination of how revictimization relates to interpersonal outcomes, such as relationship or sexual satisfaction. The current study addressed these gaps in a sample of 833 women and 556 men service members/veterans. Self-reported outcomes of PTSD, depression, suicidal ideation, sexual function, and relationship satisfaction were compared across those reporting exposure to sexual harassment and violence before the military only (i.e., pre-military), during the military only (i.e., military sexual harassment and violence [MSV]), before and during the military (i.e., revictimization), and to no exposure. More than half of women (51.14%, n = 426) reported revictimization and only 5.79% (n = 28) of men reported revictimization. Among women, those reporting MSV or revictimization tended to report higher PTSD, depression, and suicidal ideation relative to pre-military sexual violence and no sexual violence exposure. No interpersonal outcomes were significantly different among these sexual violence groups. Among men, revictimization was associated with higher PTSD, depression, and sexual compulsivity. PTSD and depression were also higher among those reporting MSV only. No effects were found for premilitary sexual trauma exposure only or relationship satisfaction for either group. Findings highlight the particularly bothersome nature of MSV, whether it occurred alone or in tandem with premilitary sexual violence. Findings also show unique gender differences across outcomes, suggesting interventions following sexual harassment and violence may differ for men and women.

The New Monument to Victims of Military Sexual Violence in Budapest

Abstract In January 2020, a resolution in favor of erecting the “Monument to Women Raped in War” was adopted by the General Assembly of Budapest. The project, which included an international design competition, aims for the construction of a memorial by 2022. The resolution was passed with the support of the parties constituting the opposition to the governing Fidesz party, which is exceptional. The article analyzes the history of this bipartisan intervention in Hungarian memory politics.

An intersectional approach to military sexual violence

AbstractDespite over 15 years of targeted prevention efforts in the U.S. military, incidence and prevalence rates of sexual violence have remained consistently high. While there has been an abundance of research on military sexual abuse, most studies have explored the issue through reporting isolated demographic variables that correlate with sexual violence vulnerability. However, intersecting oppressions based on race, gender, immigration status, class, sexuality, and other social locations produce diverse risks, experiences, and responses to sexual abuse. In the military context, factors such as branch, rank, unit, deployment status, and combat experience also shape experiences with and responses to sexual harassment and assault. This article argues for an intersectional approach to understand military sexual violence to better unpack the immensely varied sexual abuse experiences that service members may have. Additionally, prior research on the relationship between the military, masculinity, and sexual violence has often ignored the fluidity of masculinity and the myriad of ways in which gender, violence, and victimization are related. In advocating for an intersectional approach to research on military sexual violence, this article also challenges assumptions of a static military masculinity. Finally, an intersectional perspective can reveal the inadequacy of policies, practices, and research that assume a uniform victim experience.

A Study on the Problems and Improvements of Military Sexual Violence Crimes

A Study on the Problems and Improvements of Military Sexual Violence Crimes

Sexual Arenas, Alcohol (Ab)use, and Predatory Leadership: Facilitators of US Military Sexual Violence

Scholars argue that, historically, military women have not been considered equals to men in kinship and, therefore, have and will likely continue to experience more violence and greater fear of violence. The All-Volunteer Force (AVF) may even foster military sexual violence through sexual arenas in work-home spaces, alcohol (ab)use fueling sexual encounters between colleagues, and predatory leadership. This exploratory, grounded theory study captures insights of women veterans ( n = 20) entering service between 1964 and 2016. Full inclusion is alleged, yet military women are objectified and “othered,” targets of sex-based attention, predation, and violence. From these data, military sexual violence (MSV) characterizes the AVF. To mitigate this, a renewed commitment to the US military’s historical ideal of altruistic care is necessary to realize the full inclusion of women and reduce if not eliminate military sexual violence.

Addressing Military Sexual Violence by Proposing a Social Media Influencer Model.

Military sexual violence (MSV) is a prevalent issue that uniquely affects mission readiness. Although research on MSV and social media is growing, examinations of possible interventions like those employing social media in this population are scant. Given the growing interest in targeting MSV, the present systematic review was conducted. The PRISMA framework was used to conduct a systematic review of MSV and social media (N = 71). Queries were limited to articles published between 2010 and 2020. SAGE Journals, PubMed, and JSTOR were utilized. Terms and potential combinations were entered into the databases in varying Boolean combinations. Additional recorders were identified for inclusion via the reference sections of relevant records. After removing duplicates from the query results, we selected records of suspected relevance by title and screened abstracts. Finally, articles with relevant abstracts were reviewed thoroughly to determine whether they met inclusion criteria for the review. The employments of military leaders in a social media intervention puts into practice the military's central values and development of its leadership core. This intervention promotes group solidarity while maximizing conversations around meaningful messages. Findings in this review suggest military leaders could feasibly employ a cost-effective global intervention using social media, as a tool to help actively address MSV.

Interpersonal Violence Throughout the Lifespan: Associations With Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempt Among a National Sample of Female Veterans.

Female veterans experience interpersonal violence (ie, physical and sexual violence) more often than male veterans and nonveteran females. There is limited knowledge of types of interpersonal violence across the lifespan in relation to suicidal ideation and suicide attempt. Prior research has also focused on those accessing the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) care. This study examined if physical and sexual violence at differing time points (ie, premilitary, during military service) were associated with suicidal ideation and a suicide attempt at subsequent time points. We anticipated that violence would be associated with an increased risk of suicidal ideation and attempt; however, given limited prior research, we were uncertain which types of violence and time points would be associated with risk. Data from a cross-sectional national survey. A total of 407 female veterans using, formerly using, or who never used VHA care. Suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, physical violence, and sexual violence were assessed. Premilitary sexual, but not physical, violence was associated with military suicidal ideation. Both premilitary and military sexual and physical violence were associated with postmilitary suicidal ideation. Premilitary and military sexual, but not physical, violence were associated with a postmilitary suicide attempt. These results were maintained after accounting for VHA use. A significant model for military suicide attempt was not generated. Assessment of premilitary and military sexual violence among female veterans is warranted within the context of suicide risk assessment and prevention. Preventing sexual violence among female veterans may be important for preventing suicidal ideation and attempt.

A Double Bind for the Ties that Bind: A Pilot Study of Mental Health Challenges among Female US Army Officers and Impact on Family Life

Female military personnel, rising in both number and in rank, are key to the success of the US military. Currently 16% of active-duty enlisted personnel and 18% of all officers in the US military are women (Department of Defense 2018). Unique stressors for women in the military now include combat stress, the stress of a minority status, military sexual violence, divorce and parenting. Our aim was to investigate these issues related to professionalism, personal health and support networks among female military officers while they also develop and maintain a command presence. The results of our pilot with 73 female US Army Officers support generalized research with female military personnel which illustrate high self-reporting and diagnoses of stress, anxiety and depression (Haskell et al. 2010; Bean-Mayberry et al. 2011; Shekelle et al. 2011). Importantly, 65.7% of servicewomen in our sample self-reported feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression as a direct result of their leadership role in the military. When women were asked how their psychological condition impacts their family as a wife and/or mother (caregiver), they responded with comments such as low energy, less patience and family discord because of distinct roles in and out of the military. As a result of these dichotomous roles, some reported that they hid their distress from their families. These findings offer important insight for US veteran support services and highlight an under-researched set of health challenges experienced by US female military officers facing mental fatigue who simultaneously serve as a caregiver.

Illicit Military Behavior as Exceptional and Inevitable: Media Coverage of Military Sexual Violence and the “Bad Apples” Paradox

AbstractHow can we understand consistent public support and trust of the military even in climates of high rates of public awareness about military sexual violence? This article examines how the phenomenon of military sexual violence is mediated to the public through a media content and discourse analysis of newspaper reportage about military sexual violence in Australia. The analysis covers an almost thirty-year period (1989–2016) during which several “sex scandals,” some of international import, broke out. We analyze several frames used to depict the issue and conclude that military sex scandals, like other illicit military behaviors, tend to be publicly framed either as (1) a rarity that is atypical of the institution (“bad apples”) or (2) inevitable and so typical of the institution as to be unremarkable. The article then seeks to demonstrate that these seemingly disparate frames are not contradictory, but rather unify into a singular narrative. The narrative cohering these disparate frames is that military sexual violence is a phenomenon that cannot be prevented or addressed and is therefore unproblematic for the institution.

An exploration of gender-based violence in eastern Myanmar in the context of political transition: findings from a qualitative sexual and reproductive health assessment

In March 2011, the Myanmar Government transitioned to a nominally civilian parliamentary government, resulting in dramatic increases in international investments and tenuous peace in some regions. In March 2015, Community Partners International, the Women’s Refugee Commission, and four community-based organisations (CBOs) assessed community-based sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services in eastern Myanmar amidst the changing political contexts in Myanmar and Thailand. The team conducted 12 focus group discussions among women of reproductive age (18–49 years) with children under five and interviewed 12 health workers in Kayin State, Myanmar. In Mae Sot and Chiang Mai, Thailand, the team interviewed 20 representatives of CBOs serving the border regions. Findings are presented through the socioecological lens to explore gender-based violence (GBV) specifically, to examine continued and emerging issues in the context of the political transition. Cited GBV includes ongoing sexual violence/rape by the military and in the community, trafficking, intimate partner violence, and early marriage. Despite the political transition, women continue to be at risk for military sexual violence, are caught in the burgeoning economic push–pull drivers, and experience ongoing restrictive gender norms, with limited access to SRH services. There is much fluidity, along with many connections and interactions among the contributing variables at all levels of the socioecological model; based on a multisectoral response, continued support for innovative, community-based SRH services that include medical and psychosocial care are imperative for ethnic minority women to gain more agency to freely exercise their SR rights.

“I’m Going Out There and I’m Telling This Story”: Victimhood and Empowerment in Narratives of Military Sexual Violence

Storytelling has been central within the movement against military sexual violence. Among communication scholarship on narrative, there are both studies demonstrating that narrative begins to assuage sexual violence trauma and studies demonstrating that narrative reinforces gendered social norms that exacerbate sexual violence. I integrate this research with scholarship on rape culture to develop a typology of the characteristics of sexual violence stories that empower survivors and apply that typology to military sexual violence narratives. These characteristics include: 1) linking sexual violence to systemic/cultural norms through narrative’s ability to establish causality, 2) representing survivors as empowered experts by positioning storytelling as healing, and 3) modeling paths toward overcoming adversity. When used together, these strategies counter the harmful effects of stories that emphasize gendered norms of vulnerability.

Formulating Japan’s UNSCR 1325 national action plan and forgetting the “comfort women”

ABSTRACTIn September 2015, the Japanese government announced its first national action plan (NAP) to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1325, just ten days after forcefully legislating controversial security bills that would effectively lift the constitutional restrictions on overseas exercise of military force. Why did the conservative administration embrace Resolution 1325 while propelling militarization? This paper examines the formulation process of Japan’s NAP, focusing on gendered struggle over remilitarization and war memory, especially that of the “comfort women,” or Japanese imperial military sexual slavery during World War II. I will examine how post–Cold War remilitarization in Japan was closely intertwined with the struggle over war memory and the gender order of the nation, and how the conservative administration embraced international gender equality norms in an attempt to identify itself as a powerful liberal democracy engaged in maintaining the international security order, and to erase the memory of imperial military sexual violence in the past. By doing so, I attempt to critically reconsider the framework of the UN Women, Peace and Security agenda, which constructs powerful developed nations “not in conflict” as innocent supporters of women in conflict zones.

Inadequate Innocence of Korean Comfort Girls-Women: Obliterated Dignity and Shamed Self

The experiences of Korean comfort girls-women before and during World War II are a paradigmatic example of how military sexual violence has the power to obliterate women’s dignity and shame them into nonexistence. I propose that their horrific experience of sexual slavery under the Japanese military caused intense and lasting shame that resulted in the Korean comfort girls-women’s sense of self being entrenched in shame. Moreover, I argue that the innocence of Korean comfort girls-women was and continues to be inadequately recognized. The Japanese government refuses to admit its legal accountability and has not provided just reparations to Korean comfort girls-women for its treacherous and systematic sexual enslavement of Korean and other comfort girls-women. The Korean government and the people of Korea have been too slow to accept the innocence of these women, to embrace their pain, sorrow, and suffering, and to advocate for justice for them. This conversion of their innocence into inadequacy or shame, actively by the Japanese government and passively by the Korean government and its people, compounded these women’s long, miserable suffering for half a century until the silence was broken in 1991 by a brave woman, Kim Haksun, with the support of Korean activists.

Sexual Violence and the US Military: Feminism, US Empire, and the Failure of Liberal Equality

This article considers the ways in which military women’s rights campaigns have linked the “epidemic” of sexual violence to the struggle for military women’s equality. I analyze the approaches of the National Organization of Women (NOW) and Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) in order to trace a partial history of military women’s rights organizations built on liberal feminist ideals. I argue that understanding military sexual violence as a result of women’s inequality does nothing to explain sexual violence against men, as well as occludes global victims of US sexual and imperial violence. Ultimately, I argue that organizations such as SWAN are emblematic of a neoliberal feminist approach that problematically prioritizes women’s equal access to the military over a critique of US militarism.