Abstract

The Rwandan genocide was characterized, in addition to brutal killings, by equally brutal acts of sexual torture, mutilation, and enslavement as weapons against Tutsi women and girls on a mass scale. Existing scholarship on sexual violence has enhanced a general increased understanding of the contexts and challenges confronting survivors. Though the raping of women in combat and occupation zones is very common, it is never justified and will always be a serious human rights violation. This is a narrative review of sexual violence against women during the Rwandan genocide. Sexual violence was an intentional strategy of genocide. The study relied on literature review to analyze the sexual violence cases that were committed during the Rwandan genocide.

Key words: Rwandan genocide, sexual violence, rape, gender violation, sexual assault, genocidal rape, opportunistic rape.