This study concerns the complete oeuvre by the British author Helen Zahavi: Dirty Weekend (1991), True Romance (1994), and Donna and the Fatman (1998). Her novels are here read as a trilogy dealing with the dialectics of gender and violence in 20th century discourse, drawing on theories of how the construction of subjects is produced by power, of the relation between power and sexuality. The heroines of Zahavi’s novels try their best to move about in a world where their freedom of movement is limited to their female identity. In Dirty Weekend the protagonist tries to shoot her way out, claiming revenge on every man that is forcing himself upon her. She gains some freedom of movement by refusing subordination, but does not really change the order of power. The protagonist in True Romance instead finds salvation in love of the master. She learns to love the man who keeps her as a sex slave in his apartment, and when confronted with the choice between the freedom by violent action and submission by passive acceptance, she chooses the latter. The protagonist in Donna and the Fatman manage to refuse both superiority and submission. She has a debt to settle with the gangster boss Henry, but in the end blows both herself and her opponent to pieces. I argue that by doing this, Donna breaks out of the order of language. The order of power presented in Zahavi’s novels is a tyranneous dichotomy which cathegorize individuals as either victims or perpertrators. This construction is seemingly a natural order which we have to accept, but the actions of Zahavi’s last protagonist eventually proves it to be nothing but a mask, a lie. This lie is, in the words of one of Zahavi’s characters, a tenacious lie, and the only way to break out of the construction of power is to break out of the construction of the order of power. Thus the blowing up of both victim and perpertrator may enable a new world to be born.

Colombia has been characterized by an internal armed conflict since the 1960s where several violations of the human rights have followed. Threats and violence against human rights defenders is one example and this is directed toward both men and women in an attempt to deter these brave individuals from continuing their work. This thesis focuses on the commitment of women’s human rights defenders in Colombia. Numerous international human rights organizations and institutions claim that women are a particularly vulnerable group, which is why I choose to focus on this group. Starting from different feminist theories and with regard to intersectional perspectives, I want to find out: What motivates women in Colombia to defend women’s human rights? Do they pursue any specifically important issues? How do they handle the obstacles they face in their work? These questions are posed in order to find out how these women’s human rights defenders work with human rights in relation to the obstacles that they face. I want to find out what strategies they use to handle the obstacles that they are faced with. The material of the thesis mostly consists of semi-structured interviews with women from domestic women’s human rights organizations in the capital of Colombia, Bogotá. The results show that women’s human rights defenders incentive is individual and cannot be too generalized. According to the common components in the women’s answers they are motivated by the need to fight injustices, mainly social- and political injustices in relation to being a woman and violations within the armed conflict. They are empowered to continue their work through each other, through the processes and the determination to not give up. There are many specifically important issues, for example land rights, gender-based violence and rights of the ethnic minorities. Some of these rights are even said to be today’s biggest challenge for the country. The women’s human right defenders handle the obstacles to their work through not giving up until the injustices are fought and through giving each other hope. They refuse to let the perpetrators win. / Colombia har präglats av en intern väpnad konflikt sedan 1960-talet där en rad kränkningar av de mänskliga rättigheterna har följt. Hot och våld mot människorättsförsvarare är ett exempel och detta riktas både mot kvinnor och män i ett försök att avskräcka dessa modiga människor från att fortsätta med sitt arbete. Den här uppsatsen fokuserar på kvinnorättsförsvarares engagemang i Colombia. Att fokus läggs på kvinnor beror på att flera internationella människorättsorganisationer och institutioner hävdar att kvinnor är en särskilt sårbar grupp. Med utgångspunkt i olika feministiska teorier och med hänsyn till intersektionella perspektiv ställer jag mig frågorna: Vad är det som motiverar kvinnor i Colombia att försvara kvinnors mänskliga rättigheter? Driver de några särskilt viktiga rättighetsfrågor? Hur hanterar de hindren som de möter i sitt arbete? Dessa frågor ställs för att ta reda på hur dessa kvinnorättsförsvarare arbetar med mänskliga rättigheter i förhållande till de hinder som de möter. Jag vill ta reda på vilka strategier de använder för att hantera dessa hinder. Uppsatsens material består till största del av semistrukturerade intervjuer med kvinnor från nationella kvinnorättsorganisationer i Colombias huvudstad, Bogotá. Uppsatsens resultat visar att kvinnorättsförsvarares motiv är individuellt och kan inte generaliseras för mycket. Enligt de gemensamma komponenterna i kvinnornas svar motiveras dessa kvinnor av behovet att bekämpa orättvisor, främst sociala- och politiska orättvisor i förhållande till att vara kvinna och kränkningar som den väpnade konflikten för med sig. De stärks i att fortsätta sitt arbete genom varandra och genom de förda processerna samt beslutsamheten att inte ge upp. Det finns flera särskilt viktiga frågor som drivs, exempelvis markrättigheter, könsbaserat våld och de etniska minoriteternas rättigheter. Några av dessa frågor anges dessutom vara dagens största utmaningar för landet. Kvinnorättsförsvararna hanterar hindren i sitt arbete genom att inte ge upp förrän orättvisorna har bekämpats och genom att ge varandra hopp. De vägrar att låta förövarna vinna.

Background: War disproportionately affects women and children, and gender based violence (GBV) has become an increasingly common means of fighting wars and targeting civilians. Such is the case in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), particularly in the eastern provinces, where among the multitude of human rights violations, sexual violence and abuses against women and girls are committed on a large scale. Documented efforts addressing GBV in refugee communities have mainly focused on medical, programmatic, and legal responses; few studies explore the prevalence of GBV among conflict-affected populations. Objective: To determine the prevalence and correlates of outsider violence during and after conflict, and lifetime and past year intimate partner violence (IPV). To determine differences in the proportions of violence victimizations, including the differences in the proportions of outsider violence during and after conflict, and the differences in the proportions of lifetime and past year IPV. To describe patterns of reporting and healthcare seeking related to violence victimization. Methods: Cross sectional data were obtained from a sample of 810 women of reproductive age (WRA) living in two Rwandese refugee camps. GBV was defined as physical violence, sexual violence, or controlling behavior that is committed by intimate partners (IPV) or persons outside the family (outsider violence). Univariate analysis was used to describe the study population as a whole. The chi-square test for independence was used to measure significant differences between women who had identified experiencing GBV and those who did not. A z-test was conducted to explore differences in the proportions of outsider violence during and after conflict, and lifetime and past year IPV. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted to assess the unadjusted and adjusted associations between GBV and select variables of interest during and after conflict. Statistical analyses were conducted using SPSS version 14.0 Results: 434 WRA experienced GBV; of which 399 reported experiencing outsider violence before and after conflict, and 130 reported experiencing IPV. The logistical model indicated that there was a consistently significant association between a period of one to five years spent in a refugee camp and outsider violence during conflict (Adj.OR= 0.16; 95%CI:0.10-0.27; P <0.0001), lifetime IPV (Adj.OR=0.17;95%CI:0.10-0.32, p<0.0001), and IPV in the last year (Adj.OR= 0.15;95%CI:0.08-0.28, p<0.0001). Discussion: The results of this study illustrate the importance of assessing the impact of conflict on GBV among refugee and displaced populations. The high prevalence of GBV among this study population, with a prevalence of 53.3% for all forms of violence, is evidence of the great burden GBV poses on this population. Ongoing violence generated by conflict is a major public health concern that urgently requires effective interventions. For example, legal, health, and psycho-social services should be well integrated to adequately screen and address the needs of violence survivors.

<p>The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with reporting incidents of sexual violence after seventy-two hours at the sexual assault service centre in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal. This descriptive study was based on retrospective analysis of 534 medical records of victims of sexual violence at the Newcastle hospital between 2005 and 2009. A data collection sheet was designed to extract information from three sources namely: the victims‟ hospital files, J88 forms and specific hospital forms that were completed for sexual assault victims. The collected data were entered into and processed for analysis using EPI INFO statistical package. Frequencies, means and standard deviations were calculated for the data set. Test of significance was also done using the Chi-square test and presented using odds ratios with 95% CI and p-value of &lt / 0.05. The victims‟ age range was 2-81years (mean= 18.84, &sigma / =13.25). Approximately 87% were female and 59.4% of the victims were aged 0-17 years. One in five victims (19.7%) was HIV positive, and most (74.4%) reported rape with vaginal penetration. Fifty-nine percent reported within 72 hours of being assaulted. The most common reason for delayed reporting (21.5%) was fear of the perpetrator. Most of the sexual assaults were committed by male (96%) and single perpetrator (90%). Nearly a third (32.4%) of the sexual violence occurred within intimate relationships and more than two-thirds (68%) knew the perpetrators. In all, 35% sustained injuries during the assault and a third (34.5%) reported the use of weapons during the assault. Nearly half of the victims (48.7%) were referred to hospital by their relatives who also accompanied them to the facility (42.1%). Of the 198 victims that were offered post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), 87% collected the full 28-day course.</p>

Violence against women is considered a global issue and it denies women their most basic human right, their health. The news media have been identified as an important factor in how violence against women is interpreted and perceived by society. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate how journalists and editors in Guyana, South America, work with the coverage of violence against women. Furthermore, this thesis examines what policies and views on news value that are prominent on the newspapers and what possibilities journalists and editors experience, to make an impact on society, through their reporting. Eight qualitative in-depth interviews were carried out with editors and reporters on the three most widely spread daily newspapers in Guyana. Also a quantitative content analysis, covering January-April 2014, was performed on the same newspapers. In total 159 articles that reported on cases of violence against women were found and coded. The result indicates that the reporting in Guyana conforms to previous research. The conclusion is that when it comes to context, language and sources used, the newspapers generally fail to work with violence against women adequately. The reporting preserves and reproduces patriarchal power structures by using victim blaming or perpetrator excusing language, not covering it as a social issue and overusing official sources. Furthermore, the result indicates that there are unwritten policies on the newspapers. However, these guidelines are not always followed. The study indicates that the reporting is not given enough resources in terms of time and money, which might be a result of that reporters and editors do not experience that readers are interested enough for the topic to get sufficient resources.

Worldwide, women face gender-based violence daily. Gender-based violence constitutes a growing problem in societies worldwide, and one in three women globally has experienced some sort of intimate partner violence, which is the most common form of gender-based violence. Femicides are the worst form of gender-based violence with a fatal outcome, and an issue of human rights, developmental issue, health issue, and societal issue. Latin America is the regions with one of the highest femicide rates in the world, and that is one reason for why the regions was chosen. There is a wide range of research done on the subject of femicides, however there is a scarcity on the subject of Latin American government responses and legislations, and how these impact the femicide rates in the region. This thesis will examine how government responses affect femicide rates in five selected countries; Costa Rica, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico. The study will be a qualitative comparative multi-case desk study analyzed through an abductive approach. The theory applied will be the social inclusion and exclusion theory to understand if policies are inclusive or exclusive, and if the nature of the legislations have an impact on the femicide rates. The main underlying causes of femicides are impunity, lack of political will, funding, and the machismo culture. The analysis suggests that the current femicide legislations are not of appropriate nature to curb femicides as they do not tackle the underlying causes of it.

Gender-based violence is a global problem that affects women and girls of all races, colour and creed. This study locates gender-based violence within the development agenda, explores related theories and points out how culture, patriarchy and tradition influences gender-based violence perpetration and can also contribute to positive behavior change. This dissertation provides an analysis of gender-based violence globally, in the Southern African region and in Zimbabwe through secondary and primary research. The research focused on women and girls because they are constitute the majority when one looks at the victims of gender-based violence statistics and issues that come out on different communities. This research contributes to an increased understanding and knowledge of gender- based violence by interrogating the statistics of gender-based violence, response mechanisms and the role civil society organisations play. The primary research utilised guided interviews with the use of questionnaires with individuals and representatives of organisations. Findings indicate a need for greater awareness on the provisions of the Zimbabwe Domestic Violence Act, increased economic empowerment of women and more male inclusion in raising awareness as part of prevention. Key informant discussions with Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) representatives highlighted the need for programme synergies so that gender-based violence initiatives are holistic. The case study of Musasa is key in assessing the role civil society organisations play in complementing Government actions and strategies. / Development Studies / M.A (Development Studies)

Aim: To explore the experiences of Sudanese women and Eritrean refugee women in Sudan when seeking healthcare after being subject to gender-based violence. Background: In Sudan there is a general assumption that anyone who is subject violence, including gender-based violence, must first go to the police department to file a report and be given “Form Eight”, a legal document, which they must present to the healthcare provider before they receive any care. Without this form healthcare providers are, supposedly, by law not allowed to treat the person. This complicates an already vague system of services for women subject to gender-based violence. Methods: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews of eight Sudanese women and seven Eritrean refugee women. Data was analyzed through a framework analysis (a form of thematic analysis). Results: Women had to bring Form Eight before they received any help, this led to a delay in the time to receive care. There was a general lack of cooperation by police officers. Some women feared the consequences of help seeking, apparent amongst those subject to domestic violence and the Eritrean refugee women. Generally, the healthcare provided to these women was inadequate. Conclusion: This study concludes the experiences of all the women in this study when seeking healthcare after being subject to gender-based violence were far from international standards. A lot needs to be done in order for women to know the clear answer to the question posed in the title of this study; “Who do I turn to?”.

abstract: Sexual harassment has emerged as a widespread problem facing women in public space in Egypt. Activism to combat sexual harassment began in 2005. However, just prior to and in the years following the January 25, 2011 Egyptian Revolution, which witnessed an increase in the collective sexual harassment, assault and rape of women, this activism has increased. Subsequently, scholarly attention to sexual harassment and public sexual violence has also expanded. Much of the attention in scholarly analyses has been directed toward politically motivated sexual violence, focused on understanding the state commissioning of sexual violence against female protestors to drive them from protest participation. There is an emerging critique of activist approaches that seems to ignore the politicalized nature of sexual harassment to focus instead on “cultural” targets. The early work of the Egyptian Center for Women’s Rights (ECWR) and current work of HarassMap have been criticized for depoliticizing sexual harassment by failing to include an analysis of state-commissioned sexual violence in their work. Similarly, both have been accused of expanding the scope of the security state by calling for increased policing of public space to protect women from “culturally-bad” men. With data collected through one year of participant observation with HarassMap, interviews with activists from eleven anti-sexual harassment initiatives and advocacy NGOs, and community-level surveys with non-activist individuals, this dissertation argues that “cultural” work undertaken through the community-based approaches by entities like ECWR and HarassMap is, in fact, an inherently political process, in which political engagement represents both an attempt to change political culture and state practice and a negotiative process involving changing patriarchal gender norms that underpin sexual harassment at a society-wide level. New conceptualizations of sexual harassment promoted by anti-sexual harassment initiatives and NGOs in Egypt frame it as a form of violence against women, and attempt to make sexual harassment an offense that may be criminalized. Yet, this dissertation contends there is a tension between activist and widespread public understandings of sexual harassment, predicated on the incomplete framing of sexual harassment as a form of violence. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Anthropology 2016

The Rohingya, an ethnic minority group that traditionally have lived in Rakhine State, Myanmar, are facing severe structural discrimination from the Myanmar state. Rohingya women and girls have experienced horrific acts of gender-based violence from the Myanmar army in Rakhine State before they fled to Bangladesh and the refugee camps in Cox Bazar area. In these refugee camps gender-based violence continues to be widespread, much like other refugee camps in other parts of the world. Rohingya women and girls are vulnerable because of their gender, refugee status and ethnic affiliation. In addition they become even more vulnerable because family and community structures have broken down. These intersecting vulnerabilities make them exposed to gender-based violence from a number of different perpetrators. In addition these intersecting vulnerabilities lead to a lack of access to sexual and reproductive health services. Overall the humanitarian organisations operating in Cox Bazar did not manage to deliver these sexual and reproductive health services to the amount of Rohingya women and girls that needed them. Although gender-based violence was identified to be widespread in the refugee camps preventive measures were few. The unequal power relationships are identified as an underpinning reason for gender-based violence. In addition, the underlying causes of gender-based violence are connected with beliefs, norms, attitudes and structures that promote and/or tolerate gender-based discrimination and unequal power relationships.