Rape

Socio-history of the rape approaches

The rape in antiquity

The first written mention of the rape is in the Code of Hammourabi which compares the rape to the Adultère. The victim and the attacker are thus punished same manner at the discretion of the husband, whose woman is regarded as the property.

At the Jews, the woman is the property of the husband. The rape is interdict in the last of the 10 commands: You will not have aiming on the house of your next, his wife, his servant, his maidservant, his ass… . The punishment is:

if the woman is married or promised in marriage: lapidation of the man, and, if she did not shout - sign of assent -, of the woman. If this one were defended, or that the rape occurred in shift - nobody not being able to hear the cry -, she on the contrary is avenged by the hommes.
if it neither married nor were promised in marriage: obligation for the man to marry it without possibility of divorce, or payment of the fixed price by the father of the woman.

In the mythology of the ancient Greece, the gods women as men very often resort to the rape in particular against the human ones but by seldom using violence. The role of the Greek woman is limited to the pieces of housework. The adultery of the woman was punished but the man could legally maintain the concubines.

In the primitive company Roman, the Pater familias has the right of life and of died on what belongs to him and in particular the women placed under her authority. The development of the Roman law will give them a statute and an exceptional freedom while remaining under the authority of the father.

The rape with the Middle Ages

The beginning of Christianity is marked by the promotion of chastity and the respect of the virgins. In same time, and especially at the beginning of the Moyen-âge, sexual manners were very free that it is among women or the priests.

During the Feudality, the Suzerain has many rights with regard to its Vassal, like marrying or marrying the girl of its vassal. The rape of the women of modest conditions by the lords or the soldiers in time of war was tolerated. On the other hand that of the women of high-nobility was punished by death. The virgins could exonerate their rapist by marrying it, means used by certain men to make bend the will of the recalcitrant fathers and women to the marriage.

Rapes of war

The rape was a long time in the center of the wars like means of humiliating overcome but also like release. One can quote the Enlèvement of Sabines or the Trojan War to avenge Ménélas.

In the history of Antiquity, Augustin (cf the City of God ) note which the rape is a usual practice during plunderings of cities, as well as the massacre of the men. According to him, one hardly finds more one or two counterexamples, and still would be doubtful. One can quote the case of Alexandre Large the whose behavior sometimes seems to have testified to a will to protect certain women from male violence. Gengis Khan for its part said that “he had not known of greater pleasure than that to rape the women and the girls of his overcome enemies”.

At the time of the Second world war, Russians, Americans, Germans and Japanese delivered themselves to the rape. Thus, at the time of the unloading of the soldiers combined in Europe, of many complaints were carried without great results against the American soldiers (who did not make null difference between released or occupied populations being believed) by French women. The American historian J.Robert Tilly in his work “the Hidden side of the GI' S” reports that more than 17.000 rapes were made by GI in the United Kingdom, in France and Germany. During the fall of IIIe Reich in 1945, the number of German women violated by the Russian army was estimated at 2 million. This figure appears under estimated taking into account the official instructions given by the political officials to violate the greatest number of allemandes. The French occupation in Germany after 1945 itself is shown to have covered many rapes and of sequestrations of young women.

To Cyprus, during the period of Enosis (annexation in Greece) started by the mode of the Greek colonels, the Greek Cypriot militia were devoted until the intervention of the Turkish Army to many rapes, not denounced by the Turks eager to hide this humiliation. ; with the Rwanda, between 250 000 and 500 000 women, is approximately 20 % of the women were violated during the genocide of 1994; with the Congo-Brazzaville, thousands of women who fled the capital were violated in the area of the Pool, which surrounds this one, during the wars of 1998-2000; in Iraq, at least 400 women, young girls and young girls, unquestionable old of only eight years, would have been violated with Baghdad during or after the war, since April 2003 (Amnesty International, 2004).

The rape of war can also be an ethnic element of purification, the many births which follow breaking the ethnic cohesion of the victim group. Thus to the Darfur, the chiefs of village say newborns of rapes by the Djandjaouid S which they will be able to remain in their villages “if they act well”.

These systematic rapes very strongly contribute to the propagation of the AIDS and others MST. Lastly, to weaken their victims, the of torture violent one often their victims. The physical and psychological traumatisms “facilitate the interrogation”.

To the 20th century, the rape of war was sometimes condemned by the courses martial. Thus, there was, according to Susan Brownmiller, 971 judgments for rape by the courses martial American between January 1942 and June 1947 including 57 capital executions.

With the Rwanda and in Ex-Yugoslavia, the rape of war was recognized like a crime against humanity by the international penal courts.

The fight against the rape

The fight against the rape is recent. In fact the American Féministe S, as of the beginning of the Années 1970, were the first to denounce sexual violences. Their studies had a broad echo in the Anglo-Saxon countries, then in France, or the Collectif feminist against the rape was constituted in 1985. In fact the feminist fights contributed to make evolve/move the laws.

Voir also analyzes feminist patriarchate in connection with this Anglo-Saxon point of view.

The rape in prison

The prisoners (man or woman) are particularly vulnerable. To the United States of America, enters 22 and 25 % of the men in prison are victims of rapes. The prisoners condemned for rape are often the target of rape in the prisons.

The rape in right

In many countries, the legal status of the rape and the treatment which justice holds for the victims evolved/moved in particular thanks to the feminists.

The rapes escape in certain countries from any control and any sanction: the legislation is often imperfect and sometimes non-existent. Only 16 countries have laws referring to the sexual assaults specifically. But even with an adequate legislation, no country applies the law entirely (UNIFEM, the United Nations, 2003).

Some State S do not consider that the rape can exist between husband. Whereas certain civilizations or religions consider that the woman must be submitted sexually to her husband, the legislation or the Jurisprudence of certain countries admits the charge of rape of a woman by her husband. The marital rape is recognized like an infringement with whole share in 51 countries. In France, the “marital duty” was abolished in 1990 and the rape between couple is condemnable since 1992.

The majority of the jurisdictions consider that one (E) minor (E) in lower part of a certain age, the sexual Majorité, cannot validly grant a sexual relation: thus in France, the legislation prohibits the sexual relations with a minor of less than 15 years. In other States, the age limit is higher such as for example eighteen years.

According to the anglophone wikipedia, the rape is in the majority of the jurisdictions, a crime defined as Sexual relationship or penetration without valid assent of the two parts. In certain jurisdictions, the rape is defined by a penetration of the Anus or vagina by a penis, while in other jurisdictions, the penetration that it is vagina or anus do not need a penis: a finger or a Godemichet is enough. Certain jurisdictions extend the definition of the rape to include other sexual activities without assent validates, including the Fellation, the Cunnilingus and the Masturbation. The valid absence of assent necessarily does not mean that the victim explicitly refused to give its assent; generally the assent is considered invalid:

when the assent was obtained by the physical force, threatens or pressure, or
when the assent was given by a person whose age was in lower part of the sexual Maturité, or
by a person poisoned by drugs or alcohol, or
by a mentally defective person.

When the sex act implies a person whose age is below sexual maturity, the crime is named " viol" even if certain jurisdictions use the expression “sex act unauthorized by the law” to avoid the powerful term of rape.

French legislation

Since 1980, the French law brings a precise definition of the rape, which is a fifteen years Crime liable of imprisonment. The Penal code has that: Any act of penetration sexual, some nature that it is, made on the person of others, by violence, constraint, threat or surprised, is a rape .

It is the “sexual penetration” which distinguishes the rape from the others Sexual assaults.
“of some nature that it is”: this indicates any sexual penetration, that it is Vagin ale, anal (Sodomie) or oral (Fellation), or by the hand or of the objects.
“made on the person of others”: this designates either a woman, or a man, or a child (girl or boy), that the victim or known or unknown factor of the attacker (this last can be external with the family or belong to him).
“by violence, constraint, threat or surprised”: this designates the average employees by the attacker to impose its will, with the contempt of the refusal or the age of the victim. It is the not-assent which characterizes the rape.

The quality of ascending legitimates or of anybody having authority aggravating circumstances constitute. Any sexual relationship is an offense since the victim is one (E) minor (E) of less than 15 years.

Since 1992, the quality of spouse is retained like aggravating circumstance in the event of marital violences, and jurisprudence recognizes the marital rape.

According to the article of the Penal code, the rape is punished twenty years of Imprisonment whenever it were made:

on a particular person (a minor of less than 15 years, nobody particularly vulnerable),
by a particular person (ascending legitimates, natural or adoptive or by another person having authority on the victim, nobody misusing its authority whom confers to him his functions),
in particular circumstances (by several authors or accomplices, with use or assistance of a weapon),
while having involved a mutilation or permanent infirmity,
because of the sexual orientation of the victim.

The definition like " pénétration" fact the object of disputes because it excludes from the field of the rape the contacts and the caresses without penetration, which can constitute for the victims an attack quite as serious.

Swiss legislation

According to the Swiss Penal code, the rape, in article 190, can be made only on one person of female sex and must consist of the sex act in a strict sense. The sorrow is the reclusion for 10 years to the maximum and at least three years in the event of aggravating circumstances. Article 189 lays down the same sorrow and applies to the acts similar to the sex act , of which the male rape while article 187 applies to the acts made to some sixteen year old minors.

The rape between husband is continued of office since April 1st, 2004; previously, the infringement was continued only on complaint.

Statistics

Generally, one has few statistical data on this criminality which is studied only since a few tens of years. The Canada and the other countries which continue with the most success the sex criminals seem to have the strongest rate of rapists, while the countries where the rape is generally ignored by the company do not hold any account of this criminality. In the same way, the figures on the false rape charges vary much according to the sources. From 2%, according to the feminist organizations with 80%, certain American investigations. The only truly serious investigation into the subject, goes back to 1994 in the USA. Eugene J. Kanin would have ends after 9 years to a figure of 41% (with variations from 25% to 85% according to the date and the place). However this figure includes only the false charges recognized by the indicters themselves, which leaves think that the true figure could be higher, but relates to only the United States, where the charges of rape are numerous.

A high proportion of rapes never are entered in the statistics since not juridically recognized in the country of the crime, and also very often because it is difficult for the victims to carry the charge.

Throughout the world

On average in the world, a woman on five will be victim of rape or assault with intent to commit rape during its life (WHO, 1997).
In Saudi Arabia, the authors of a rape are liable to the Capital punishment. The victims of rape are also punished: November 22nd, 2007, a Chiite violated by seven men close to Qatif was condemned by a court to receive 200 whiplashes and in 6 months of prison. The rate of judgment for rape remains low, of 7 % on average. A third of the number of rapes estimated would have been announced in 2003.
With the the United States, a woman is violated every 90 seconds and 50 % of the declared rapes were made in the residence of the victim. Only 16 % of the women announce a rape to the police force. The number of rapes has fallen continuously for several years.
With the Pakistan, the rape must be attested by four male witnesses, without what the plaintiff can be continued for extra-marital relation.
In Turkey, 35,6 sometimes % of the women undergo marital rapes, and 16,3% often.

France

The rape is a considerable social phenomenon whose width starts to be recognized. One has official statistical data only since the national survey carried out in 1999 (ENVEFF).

96 % of the authors of rape are of male sex and 91 % of the victims are of female sex (concordant statistics of the Ministry for Justice and the CFCV, Feminist Collectif Against the Rape). However one is unaware of the real number of victims of male sex, the men seldom revealing these crimes.

According to the statistics of national telephone permanence Rapes Women Information :

74 % of the rapes are made by a known person of the victim;
25 % of the rapes are made by a family member;
57 % of the rapes are made on minor people (girls and boys);
49 % of the rapes are made without any physical violence;
67 % of the rapes take place in the residence (victim or attacker);
45 % of the rapes are made of day.

The statistics of the Ministère of Justice are not revealing extent of the phenomenon, since they take into account only the rapes being the subject of a lawsuit under this qualification (it also happens that justice qualifies a rape, which is a crime, as offense of “sexual assault” so that he is judged into correctional thus without jury, and not in front of bases). However only 1 rape out of 11 fact the object of a complaint (ENVEFF). The number of complaints for rape is in constant increase; it more than doubled between 1985 and 1995, with a deceleration of the increase since. This evolution is allotted, according to some, with an increase in the made facts, while, for others, it reveals rather than the women more and more often carry felt sorry for.

The rape with the cinema

If the rape belongs to good number of films of war and action, certain feature-length films evoke it like main theme by denouncing some its consequences. It is in particular the case of the films the Defendants , Thelma and Louise or Irréversible .

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