The U.S. Institute of Peace hosted Dr. Jelke Boesten on Wednesday, February 18, 2015, for a panel discussion on the implications of wartime sexual violence on the gender and power dynamics in post-conflict settings.

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Sexual violence during and after violent conflict is increasingly recognized as a threat to international peace and security. On February 18, 2015, Dr. Jelke Boesten discussed the implications of wartime sexual violence on gender and power dynamics through an analysis of the Peruvian armed conflict. Dr. Boesten is the author of the newly published book “Sexual Violence During War and Peace: Gender, Power, and Post-Conflict Justice in Peru.”

Governments and international organizations are increasing their efforts to prevent and respond to the systemic use of rape during wartime. The U.K. Government hosted the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in June 2014 to identify practical steps toward ending impunity for the use of rape as a weapon of war.

This event was part of USIP’s Missing Peace Initiative, which aims to connect practitioners and academics on work relating to preventing sexual violence.  Dr. Boesten, a Senior Lecturer in Emerging Economies and International Development at King’s College London, wrote the book while she was a Jennings Randolph Senior Fellow at the Institute in 2012-13. She explores the social and political impact of sexual violence against women and how existing prejudices and ideas about gender, race and class impede the search for justice in the aftermath of a violent conflict. 

Dr. Boesten made keynote remarks and then joined an expert panel discussion on the impact of sexual violence in conflict.

Speakers

  • Tani Adams
    Formerly of The Wilson Center and U.S. Institute of Peace
  • Jelke Boesten
    King’s College, London
  • Kimberly Theidon
    The Wilson Center
  • Kathleen Kuehnast, Moderator
    U.S. Institute of Peace

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