The Need for the International Criminal Law Community to Recognise Conflict-Related Sexual Crimes Committed against Boys
 

Author:

Windell Nortje
 

Summary:

The sexual abuse of boy soldiers is a matter that has unfortunately not received the judicial and academic attention it deserves. Boy soldiers have been sexually abused not only by male commanders but also by female commanders and other offenders. Historically, the recognition of conflict-related sexual crimes has been mute. While such crimes were disregarded after World War II, the International Criminal Tribunals of the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda were the first international courts to focus on the matter. The Special Court for Sierra Leone and the International Criminal Court has however opted to focus on sexual violence against women and girls only. Boys are often mentioned in passing. This research challenges this approach. It does so by looking at a special case in Northern Uganda where boy soldiers in the Lord’s Resistance Army were sexually abused. The article then examines a case where evidence of sexual abuse against boy soldiers were ignored as well as several cases where International Courts have dealt with the sexual abuse of males. The article then analyses the reasons why sexual violence against boys remains silent, including homophobia, patriarchy and toxic masculinities. The article challenges the International Criminal Law community to break the silence and to create child-friendly spaces for boys to share their experiences of sexual abuse.


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