Political Science Commons^™

Sexual Violence And Sex Trafficking: An Observation Of Developing International Law And Its Implementation, Hannah Kate Albach

Dartmouth Undergraduate Journal of Politics, Economics and World Affairs

Margot Walström, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Sexual Violence defines sexual violence as a "way of demonstrating power and control. It inflicts fear on the whole community. And it is unfortunately a very effective, cheap and silent weapon with a long-lasting effect on every society.” Despite the universal damage of sexual violence throughout history, international law did not begin to develop a response to such crimes until the 1990s. Worldwide fear and shame associated with atrocities of sexual violence, difficulty defining it across cultures, challenges to accurate data collection, and lack of collective action all contribute to the …