Sexual Violence in the Military - Essay Example

Original thesis.Â’ “Sexual violence in the military raises many human rights issues and should, therefore, be considered as a human rights issue”. Introduction When sexual violence in the military is mentioned, one immediately thinks about sexual assaults committed by soldiers against civilians. This is, however, not always the case. American troops are often at the receiving end of sexual violence from their own comrades. Sexual violence in the military is a problem that faces men and women alike. However, women are more likely to fall victim to sexual violence perpetrators than men due to the hegemonic masculinity nature in the military. These perceptions undermine the protection of vulnerable groups like women in the military against sexual violence and illustrate the limitation of liberal feminist perspectives. Most importantly, sexual violence within the US military not only infringes on the Human Rights Legislation but also brings about economic, social and psychological effects on the victims and thus, should be treated as a human rights issue. This paper will first illustrate the human rights violations that stem from sexual violence against women in the US military. Subsequent parts of the essay show the economic, social and psychological effects of sexual violence, which have human rights implications on the victim. The conclusion sums up the arguments put up in the essay. Human Rights Violated Sexual assault can be understood to mean the intentional, physical, sexual contact with an unwilling person (National Center for Victims of Crime, 2008). It involves the use of force, coercion, physical threats, abuse of authority or is done under circumstances in which the victim cannot give consent. Sexual offenses of a sexual nature among US troops have been on a steady rise. The Pentagon released a US army report in January 2012 indicating a 64% increase in military sexual violence incidents since 2006 (Mulrine, 2012). These figures are startling, given that thousands of US troops are deployed to various parts of the world each year. The Military culture tends to glorify masculinity and devalues femininity (Manjoo, 2011, p.129). According to Mulrine (2012), reports indicate that women form only 14% of the military’s ranks however, 95% of all sexual assault complaints are recorded from women. Hence, the concept of hegemonic masculinity and hyper-masculinity could be easily identified in the military environment with the former undertaking activities or role that give authorization to “men’s dominance over women” and the latter carrying out the exaggeration of masculinity behavior emphasizing power, toughness, sexual potency and more (Connell & Messerschmidt, 2005, p.832). This in term, undermine the theory of liberal feminism and in form discriminate against women in the military force. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN in 1948 sets forth the international standard for human rights (United Nations, 2012). It enumerates the rights to which every individual in the world is entitled and the right to privacy as stated in Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (United Nations, 2012). Privacy in this context should be taken to mean of one’s body, home, personal space and personal information. Most of the violent, sexual offenses reported are committed in the victims’ homes, bathrooms, offices and other private spaces (Benedict, 2009, p.77). One servicewoman reported that a colleague followed her to the bathroom and raped her (Gibbs, 2010). Another victim’s bedroom was broken into, and she was raped by a comrade (Hunter, 2007, p 260).These incidences reveal gross violations of the victims’ privacy. An act of sexual impropriety towards someone is a violation of that person’s most intimate space. The victim is left feeling exposed and betrayed. Hence, sexual assault in the US military results not only with the more common feelings of violation, but also with a strong sense of betrayal by ones comrades who are supposed to fight and protect one another. Moreover, during investigations and treatment, the victim reveals many intimate details and the information on record is accessible by many people, including researchers. Some of it goes into reports made when leaving the force. Many victims feel that revealing this information even after they are no longer in service is an infringement on their privacy (Hunter, 2007, p. 309). Furthermore, Article 1 and 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human rights states that Human Beings have equal entitlement to dignity and rights (United Nations, 2012). Therefore, no one should be treated in a degrading, inhuman or cruel manner. Accounts of victims of sexual violence in the military reveal the horrifying details of severely humiliating experiences. There are indications that a high percentage of men in the military find forceful sexual behavior “ok” (Hillman, 2009, p.106). Many of these offenses are perpetrated by groups on one victim in a very humiliating and cruel method. Nevertheless, the humiliation does not end at that point. Martin (2012) gives personal accounts of women facing humiliation from their superiors after reporting such incidences. In one such case, a female cadet was told by her commanding officer not to go “bitching to her after having sex and changing her mind”. According to the victim, that was worse than the rape itself (Martin, 2012). To the victims, sexual violence against them is not just that, it is an abuse of their human rights that needs to be addressed. In addition, sexual violence in the military is a human rights issue falling under the jurisdiction of The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (Human Rights Watch, 2010). Unfortunately, the US has not yet ratified the treaty (Butler, Gluch & Mitchell, 2007, p. 673). This, however, does not preclude it from fulfilling its obligations to protect its citizens from human rights violations. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Article 22, entitles every person to the protection of his or her state (United Nations, 2012). Hence, it is the state’s duty to ensure the protection and security of persons (Manjoo, 2011, p.146). Persons serving in the military are entitled to protection from harm by the state. In the unfortunate event that one gets sexually assaulted while in service, the state will have failed to ensure the individual’s safety. His or her right to protection will have been violated. The troops deployed to various work stations have a duty to protect US interests wherever they are. The state, in return, owes them security of person. In many instances, sexual violence among servicemen is ignored. This provides an opportunity for reoffending, and puts many victims in danger. Statistics show that women in military service are three times more likely to be raped on base than civilian women (Williams & Bernstein, 2011, p.138).They are also more likely to die from a violent attack by a serviceman than from a bullet in war (Butler, Gluch & Mitchell, 2007, p. 669). In this way, their rights to protection and personal safety are violated by the offenders and the state. Justice Denied Majority of sexual offences of a violent nature in the US military are unreported (BBC News, 2010). For this reason, statistics do not represent real numbers and figures. Forceful sodomy, sexual assault and rape are the most frequent sexual assault complaints (Manjoo, 2011, p. 89). In the year 2011, only 3,191 cases of sexual violence were reported in the US military which is far below the real figure, according the Leon Panetta (Mulrine, 2012). The defense secretary estimated the real figure to be around 19, 000 sexual assaults last year alone (Mulrine, 2012). The victims give varying reasons for choosing not to report these crimes. One of the most prominent of these is that most victims believe they will not get justice. They are convinced that the perpetrators of sexual violence will go unpunished (Manjoo, 2011, p.101). The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), that is the “code of military criminal laws applicable to all U.S. military members worldwide” enacted by the Congress, provides two forms of punishments for officers found guilty of a crime (Mason, 2012, p.2). The U.S. military members can either face the courts-martial which is classified into three forms: summary court-martial, general court-martial and special court-martial or receive non-judicial punishments such as demotions in rank, verbal admonitions, forfeiture of pay and more (Mason, 2012, p.5). However, these two disciplinary processes do not guarantee justice for victims of sexual violence in the military (Martin, 2012). The reasons take the U.S. military “command and control environment” into account (Alyn, n.d.). Firstly, the UCMJ grants a commanding officer complete discretion to decide whether to pursue the court-martial or non-judicial remedy (Manjoo, 2011, p. 121). This decision is not reached at after considering the severity of the offense alleged. As provided by the UCMJ, the court-martial is an option only if the commanding officer deems the appropriate punishment to be 30 days incarceration or more (Administration of Military Justice, 2007, p.17). Hence, it can be seen that this decision is unjust and totally depends on the discretion of the commanding officer. Sometimes, serious crimes go un-investigated and offenders go unpunished. In these situations the victims human rights is thus not protected. Furthermore, the 2011 annual report of the Sexual Assault and Prevention Office (SAPRO) reported that, out of the 3158 military sexual assaults reports, only 8% of the sexual offenses reported were brought before the court-martial in 2010 (Lazare, 2011). The situation is complicated by the fact that most of these offenses are committed by officers in a senior rank than the victim (Manjoo, 2011, p. 123). Secondly, an offender may also request to be discharged from the military instead of facing the court martial through the engagement of a lawyer (McCormack, 2011). The Service Women’s Action Network reveals information showing that 10% of the reported offenders between 2009 and 2011 were allowed to resign by the pentagon (Mulrine, 2012). The offenders entitled to this privilege include perpetrators of sexual violence in the force. If such a request is granted by the military authorities, the offender goes scot free and they successfully avoided a trial for sexual violence. Lastly, the offender’s commanding officer is mandated to conduct investigations into the allegations against him or her (Mulrine, 2012). However, most of the officers are not adequately trained to handle the complexities of investigations into crimes of a sexual nature as the investigations required the recognition and protection of a variety of human rights (Mulrine, 2012). The victims’ rights such as the right to privacy, dignity and proper medical care, therefore, are not adequately protected (Nelson, 2002, p.85).These are some of the ways in which sexual violence victims are denied justice by the existing legislation. In addition, many victims of sexual violence refuse to report these crimes because they fear punishment and retaliation from the offender (Mulrine, 2012). Many sexual offenses are committed under circumstances where the victim may have violated certain military codes and regulations such as engaging in underage drinking, or not being in possession of a firearm when he or she is supposed to carry one. Strasser (2012) gives the accounts of female victims of sexual violence who were threatened with disciplinary action after reporting the incidents to their superiors. One was to be disciplined for having taken part in underage drinking. Another female officer could not protect herself from her attacker because she did not have her firearm at the time of the attack. Military rules required her to be in possession of it at that particular time. She was also said to be eligible for punishment after reporting the incident. Accounts like these discouraged victims from seeking justice, for fear of being punished for their own wrongful actions or inactions. These victims are denied their rights to justice and redress for allegedly jeopardizing their own safety. Economic and Social effects The perpetration of sexual violence in the military results in violation of a right to make a living. Nelson (2002, p. 189) argues that many victims of military sexual violence end up being unlawfully dismissed from the force. Strasser (2012) shares this view and supports it with real life accounts of military veterans. According to - (), there are countless of cases where victims of sexual violence are dismissed from the force by reason of mental illness such as personality disorder. One of Strasser’s accounts states a real-life example of a military officer who reported against her superior for raping her (2012). However, she was accused of being diagnosed with personality disorder and declared unfit to serve in the force thus, dismissed (Strasser, 2012). Unfairly discharging the victims from military service denies them the right to earn a living from their careers. If this right is looked at from a comprehensive view, it extends to the rights of these officers’ family members and dependents (Nelson, 2002, p. 189). It can be argued that it is not only the right to earn a living alone that is violated but also the right to be provided for is also interfered with. For instance, a child whose education needs are met by the dismissed officer may be denied a right to quality education as a result of the dismissal. Hence, the human rights violations that stem from sexual violence in the US military may affect even the rights of people not serving in the force (Nelson, 2002, p.190). Dismissing victims from the force and not the offenders endangers the lives of other servicewomen or servicemen and can be seen as a violation of both economic rights and the victim’s right to security. Leaving the offenders to continue serving in the force puts other people’s careers and lives at risk. This is because most sexual offenders are repeat offenders. They are likely to continue abusing other members of the force. The fact that they are left to go unpunished makes them think they are invisible. Psychological effects All persons are entitled to treatment that does not inflict any form of torture on them. The psychological torture that victims of sexual violence in the military go through is, therefore, a violation of their human right. According to Hansen (2005, p.5), “researchers have documented the widespread problem of rape trauma following sexual assault” in the past two decade. Furthermore, Protect Our Defenders (2012) claims that sexual violence is the leading cause of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in military veterans. According to Williams & Bernstein, (2011, p.142), victims who are diagnose with PTSD will not only find it difficult to cope with their daily lives but also experiencing anxiety, nightmares, insomnia, flash-backs, bursts of temper and panic attacks. Sexual violence results in long-term physical health problems as well as psychological distress which in some ways become so severe that they become suicidal when victims fail to get justice (Hansen, 2005, p.5). The humiliation and anger that the victims experience tends to traumatizes them and thus, affecting their mental health. Kang et. al. (2005, p.192) noted that women victims are prone to suffer from depression twice as high and nine times more likely to experience PTSD The violation of the victim’s human rights of a psychological nature may also be translated into violations on other people’s rights. When a psychologically disturbed officer is unable to meet his or her family obligations, this is a violation of the family’s rights. The victim’s family members are entitled to his or her love and care. Many times, such rights of hundreds of families are violated as a result of sexual violence. For example the abused officer may be unable to satisfy his or her spouse’s conjugal needs. This is a gross violation of the spouse’s conjugal rights, stemming from the psychological effects of sexual violence in the US military. Conclusion Members of the US military no longer feel safe in the company of people they vow to protect with their lives as sexual violence has become prevalent in the military. Sexual violence not only violates their bodies, but also infringes on various human rights to which they are entitled. The effects of sexual violence are physical, economic, social and psychological. All these adversely affect the victims’ human rights. Read More