Citation

Safe Mother. 1997; (23): 8.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1997, World Health Organization)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

12321081

Abstract

Rape is recognized as a crime of war. During armed conflict in Bosnia, it was deliberate policy to rape young women to force them to bear the enemy's child. During conflicts in Rwanda, rape was systematically used as a weapon of ethnic cleansing aimed at destroying communities. The national population office in Rwanda estimates that 2000-5000 infants were born as a result of such rape. The general decline in women's health, and in their reproductive health in particular, were two consequences of the wars in Bosnia and Rwanda. Women and girls suffered most from the violence. Systematic rape also has a terrible effect upon women's physical and mental health, including pregnancy-related complications, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and death as a result of induced abortion. Fear of social stigma associated with being raped discourages women who have been raped from seeking help or treatment. Moreover, most women who have been raped have difficulty re-establishing intimate relations, while others desire to bear many more children in order to compensate for children lost during the war. Finally, even women who are not raped during times of conflict may find it necessary to have sex with men in order to secure food, shelter, safe conduct, and/or refugee status for themselves and their children. Health services available to people with injuries or STDs need to be better equipped to provide medical care and counseling.

Language: en