The Evolving Jurisprudence of the Crime of Rape in International Criminal Law

This article focuses on the ways in which the international legal system has treated the crime of rape as a weapon of war. The author identifies some of the challenges in the evolution of international rape law jurisprudence. First, the author emphasizes the lack of consensus regarding the definition of rape. Second, the author discusses the issue of contextualizing consent and coercion in an armed conflict situation. Third, the author addresses concerns about balancing the rights of the victim against the rights of the accused. Additionally, the author discusses how rape developed as a war crime and crime against humanity, as well as the requirements for successful prosecution. Finally, the author offers future recommendations in the area of rape law jurisprudence, such as establishing concrete rape shield laws, setting probative limitation on women's decisions to forego abortions, and abolishing the mens rea requirement for establishing lack of consent.