The political economy of sexual violence against men and boys in armed conflict

Abstract

In 2012, the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence, Zainab Bangura, noted explicitly for the first time that men and boys are also often victims of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). Acknowledging the common occurrence of CRSV perpetrated against men and boys led her to declare that wartime sexual violence is ‘no longer a gender issue’ (UN News 2012). Her sentiments were echoed in the 2012 Human Security Report, which argued that the mainstream narrative and framework for addressing ‘rape as a weapon of war’ misrepresented the issue, in part because it has neglected to address the perpetration of CRSV against men and boys.