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Rape as socio-cul u al phenomenon – a key o ackle
gende -based iolence
DR. IRINE KHERKHEULIDZE
P o esso , CAUCASUS SCHOOL OF LAW
CAUCASUS UNIVERSITY
PAATA SAAKADZE 1, TBILISI 0102,
GEORGIA [email protected]
Abs ac : Signi ican changes ha e been made in las decade in e ms o empowe ing women – bo h on indi idual and a
class le el. The Council o Eu ope Con en ion on p e en ing and comba ing iolence agains women and domes ic
iolence wi h i s all-encompassing and g oundb eaking na u e sa egua ds women igh s h ough di e se means.
None heless, gende -based iolence agains women, including ape is s ill pe asi e in ou socie ies, unde mining
uni e sal clause on gende equali y. This a icle app oaches ape, as one o he o ms o gende -based iolence. I
disassembles he phenomenon o ape in o pieces wi h a iew o examining i s socio-cul u al genesis.
Keywo ds: Gende s e eo ypes; gende -based iolence; socio-cul u al; he Is anbul Con en ion; ape.
INTRODUCTION
o he las decade he Council o Eu ope Con en ion on p e en ing and comba ing iolence
agains women and domes ic iolence1 has become by a he mos magni icen egional legal
ins umen o ackle gende -based iolence agains women. In line wi h such in e na ional
de elopmen s, Geo gia has made a s ep o wa d and signed he Con en ion in June 2014, ye a i ied
i only in 2017.
Apa om naming and aming he concep and essence o gende -based iolence, Which
CEDAW2 ailed o accomplish un il elabo a ion o Gene al Recommenda ion N19,3 he Is anbul
Con en ion has also d awn s a es' a en ion o some hing being unde es ima ed be o e as igge o
such iolence. This igge , in a whole can be named as socio-cul u al aspec o he issue, whils
owing o di e en ia ed app oach his phenomenon is possible o be disman led in o cul u al
(including belie es, p ejudices, cus oms and adi ions) and social (including gende ) componen s.
P oposed cons uc ion and in e ela edness o abo e e e ed aspec s, as o being unde pinning
gende -based iolence is explici ly seen in he ape cases. Hence he a icle aspi es o explain he
ape om he socio-cul u al dimension wi h a iew o elucida ing he main common causes o
gende -based iolence, which a e no limi ed o ape o e en o he o ms o sexual iolence.
Ne e heless, di e si y o cul u es, as well as o he social p ac ices, inclined o each co esponding
cul u e, s ill con ibu es o di e gen peculia i ies and esilience o indigenous oo s en enched in a
socie y o pa icula cul u e. Ul ima ely, his is o say, ha o comp ehending and ackling
gende -based iolence agains women on he ins ance o ape, i is u mos o ela e he sexual
iolence o he socio-cul u al backg ound o he issue, conside ing simila i ies and disc epancies in
hei ea u es.
1 Council o Eu ope T ea y Se ies - No. 210, Council o Eu ope Con en ion on p e en ing and comba ing iolence
agains women and domes ic iolence, Is anbul, 11.V.2011. A ailable a : h ps:// m.coe.in /168008482e
2 Con en ion on he Elimina ion o All Fo ms o Disc imina ion Agains Women (CEDAW), adop ed Decembe 18, 1979,
en e ed in o o ce Sep embe 3, 1981, U.N. Doc. A/34/46 (1979). A ailable a : h ps://www.ohch .o g/en/ ea y-
bodies/cedaw
3 Dub a ka Šimono ić, “Global and Regional S anda ds on Violence Agains Women: The E olu ion and Syne gy o he
CEDAW and Is anbul Con en ion”, 36 Hum. R s. Q. 590, 2014, p. 601-602.
F
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Only in his way i will become possible o see how and why he de ini ion o sexual assaul ,
including ape, should be composed acco ding o a ce ain cons uc ion, why should we app oach
his issue, bo h heo e ically and poli ically wi h special gende sensi i i y and why o o esee
possible socio-cul u al ba ie s on he way o he implemen a ion o hese no ma i e and poli ical
changes. The e o e, he main indings o his a icle a e applicable ac oss he cul u es o di e en
coun ies, in hei a emp o b ing na ional legisla ion o he compliance wi h in e na ional women
human igh s anda ds.
I has been widely ag eed ha he concep o ape as well as i s pe cep ion by humans has
ne e allen unde blanke app oach. Ra he , mul i-laye con ibu o ac o s o he ape should be
app oached no only in legal, bu also in socio-cul u al (including gende ed) unde s anding o he
issue, which a e igh ly in e wined o each o he .
Whils he me e legal in e p e ion o he issue limi s i s assessmen o he c iminal law scope,
he socio-cul u al obse a ion o he phenomenon opens he doo s o he de ec ion o an ally o de ea
his pe asi e phenomenon. I is in his discou se, when becomes necessa y o de elop heo ies,
es ed agains e idence, as o wha causes ape in o de o help he e alua ion o wha is e ec i e in
p e en ing such ype o sexual iolence agains women.4 F om his s ance, socio-cul u al dimension
is he main poin o s a ed wi h, as pu sued in he a icle below.
1. CONCISE DESCRIPTION OF A RAPE PHENOMENON FROM SOCIO-CULTURAL
PERSPECTIVE
In con empo a y Eu opean sexual poli ics he in e sec ion o ca ego ies – such as ace, gende
and sexuali y - a e closely ela ed o he poli ical discou se.5 In u n, such complex in e ela edness
is buil upon social and cul u al ac o s, which, sadly, no qui e seldom c ea e he sa e ha en o he
pe pe a o s o sexual iolence.
Gagnon’s and Ake ’s a i udes and heo ies on lea ned beha io , implica ing c ime o ape oo
in hei analysis, suppo an idea o placing ape unde he umb ella o socie al phenomena. This
pe spec i e complemen s he gene al sociological ecogni ion ha ape – like all o he
beha io -should be unde s ood in e ms o i s socio-cul u al con ex .6 Due o a ious eminis
campaigns, du ing he las ou decades, he issue o ape has u ned in o a ma e o sociological
in e p e a ion, whe e he easons a e sough in gende ela ions, powe dynamics, and sexuali y
cons uc s.7 In his ela ion he p eamble o he Is anbul Con en ion emphasizes he ac ha ,
iolence agains women is a mani es a ion o “his o ically unequal powe ela ions be ween women
and men”, which ha e led o “domina ion o e , and disc imina ion agains , women by men”, and
ha i acknowledges he “s uc u al” na u e o iolence, which means ha i is oo ed in socie y and
as such mus be e adica ed.8
In u n, an h opological esea ch on he genesis o gende inequali y sugges s ha cul u al
suppo o iolence is inimical o he s a us o women. 9 This is a co ne s one s a emen , ha p o es
4 Syl ia Walby e al., S opping Rape, Towa ds a comp ehensi e policy, Uni e si y o B is ol, Policy P ess, 2015, p.4.
5 Sha on A. Fi zGe ald & May-Len Skilb ei, Sexual Poli ics in Con empo a y Eu ope: Mo ing Ta ge s, Si ing Ducks.
Cham: Palg a e Macmillan, 2022. p. 11.
6 Vickie McNickle Rose, “Rape as a Social P oblem: A Byp oduc o he Feminis Mo emen ”, Ox o d Jou nal: Social
P oblems, Oc ., 1977, Vol. 25, No. 1, p.79.
7 May-Len Skilb ei e al. in Rape in he No dic Coun ies, Con inui y and Change, Rou ledge Resea ch in Gende and
Socie y, edi ed by Ma ie B u ik Heinskou, May-Len Skilb ei and Ka i S e ansen, Rou ledge, 2020, p.12.
8 Sa a de Vido, “The a i ica ion o he council o Eu ope Is anbul Con en ion by he EU: A s ep o wa d in he p o ec ion
o women om iolence in he Eu opean legal sys em”, 9 Eu . J. Legal S ud. 69, 2016-2017, p.75.
9 La y Ba on & Mu ay A. S aus, “Fou Theo ies o Rape, A Mac o-sociological analysis”, Social P oblems, Vol. 34, No.
5, 1987, p. 470.
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why i e u able connec i i y o he decisi e elemen s, such as – legal and socio-cul u al componen s
–plays a c ucial ole in unde s anding and punishing ape.
In his discou se, gende as a social cons uc 10 is o be e alua ed unde he lens o
gende -based disc imina ion due o di ec linkage be ween gende -based iolence and disc imina ion
agains women.11 Simul aneously, socially cons uc ed oles o women and men a e cul u ally
de e mined. Such an o e lap o social and cul u al componen s ega ding he concep ualizing and
elucida ing he phenomenon o gende , makes i a cul u al and social cons uc ion.
The Is anbul Con en ion ecognizes “ ha iolence agains women is one o he c ucial social
mechanisms by which women a e o ced in o a subo dina e posi ion compa ed wi h men in addi ion
o he ecogni ion o he “s uc u al na u e o iolence agains women as gende -based iolence.12
Howe e , gende -based iolence can be ueled no only wi h social, bu cul u al mechanisms oo.
Qui e o en cul u al ac o s13 bond o pa icula en i onmen , e hnici y o e en o a his o y can se e
as he impe us o he supp ession o women.
The undeniable ac , ha cul u al suppo o iolence ende s gende inequali y, is suppo ed
in legal li e a u e oo.14 E en ually, ape su i o women ace in hei social li e a pa h, di icul o
walked owing o he abundancy o social and cul u al no ms o deg ading na u e. This a e such
no ms ha emboldens gende inequali y and condone gende -based iolence – e en and a some
ins ances – ape.
Implica ion o cul u al ac o s
In he la es s udies he concep o cul u e is de ined in a b oad and na ow e ms.15 Such a
di ision enables on i s unbounded engagemen in his a icle – om social ac i i ies o socie al
mo emen s, which o e all o ms he men ali y and alues o a socie y a la ge.
Agains his backg ound i ’s p edicable o assume, ha cul u e poses an impo an place in
en isaging on how pa icula popula ions and socie ies iew, pe cei e, and p ocess sexual ac s as
well as sexual iolence.16 The s udy on gene al cul u al ac o s, conduc ed by an h opologis s ha e
iden i ied h ee common cha ac e is ics o socie ies, which seemingly a ec he equency o ape.
These ea u es a e: in e pe sonal iolence, male dominance, and nega i e a i udes owa d emales.17
Violence, ha is being legi ima e cul u ally, plays a huge pole in ape cases as i c ea es
bo h - cul u ally legi imized c ime and cul u ally legi ima e ic im. In such a socie y gende ole
s ipula es o ming ypology o a pe pe a o and i s ic im. Va ious cul u es desc ibe ce ain o ms
o sexual iolence ha a e condemned and o he o ms ha may be ole a ed o a deg ee, he
10 The Is anbul Con en ion, A icle 3, pa a (c): “gende shall mean he socially cons uc ed oles, beha iou s, ac i i ies and
a ibu es ha a gi en socie y conside s app op ia e o women and men”.
11 I ine Khe kheulidze, “Re-concep ualizing Sexual Ha assmen —P emises and Challenges”, in Reconside ing Gende
Based Violence and O he Fo ms o Violence Agains Women, Compa a i e Resea ch/Analysis in he Ligh o he Is anbul
Con en ion, edi ed by G. Piccinelli, I. Khe kheulidze & A. Bo oni, LibellulaEdizioni, pp. 87-88.
12 The Is anbul Con en ion, p eamble.
13 FGM is one o he examples. The p ac ice o FGM is a iola ion o he human igh s o gi ls and women. See:
I ine Khe kheulidze, "Gende ed aspec s in he c imes h ea ening human's li e and heal h - o ced s e iliza ion and FGM"
in Ac ual Ma e s o C iminal law, edi ed by N. Todua & M. I anidze, Tbilisi, 2020, p. 201-303.
14 Jane Sal zman Cha e z, Sex and Ad an age: A Compa a i e Mac o-S uc u al Theo y o Sex S a i ica ion, 1984; Naomi
Quinn, "An h opological s udies on women's s a us," Annual Re iew o An h opology, 1977, 6:181-225.
15 Syl ia Walby e al., S opping Rape, Towa ds a comp ehensi e policy, Uni e si y o B is ol, Policy P ess, 2015, p.191.
16 Kal a Gu inde & Bhug a Dinesh, “Sexual iolence agains women: Unde s anding c oss-cul u al in e sec ions”, Indian
Jou nal o Psychia y, 2013 July-Sep embe , 55(3): 244–249.
17 William L. Ma shall & Howa d E. Ba ba ee,” An in eg a ed heo y o he e iology o sexual o ending”, in Handbook o
Sexual Assaul , Issues, Theo ies, and T ea men o he O ende , edi ed by W. L. Ma shall, D.R. Laws & H. E. Ba ba ee,”
(NSSB), Plenum P ess, 1990, p. 265.
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cul u ally legi imized o ms o iolence.18 Vic imiza ion isk o women o be aped can inc ease
because o cul u al (s uc u al) p oneness o such beha io . In C iminology, a posi i e co ela ion is
ound be ween powe lessness, dep i a ion and he equency o c iminal ic imiza ion. Cul u al
s igma iza ion and ma ginaliza ion also enhance he isks o c iminal ic imiza ion by designa ing
ce ain g oups as “ ai game” o as cul u ally legi ima e ic ims.19 Hence, i is ob ious why in he
socie y o male dominance and women powe lessness, he women in gene al a e deemed o be
“legi ima e” ic ims o sexual desi es o men. Tha is why he equal powe ela ions as a gua an o
o gende equali y a he same ime sa egua ds he educ ion o he sexual iolence agains women.
Examina ion o cu en si ua ion shows ha oge he wi h g owing consciousness abou he
signi icance o c ime o ape, on i s cul u al backg ound and on i s in e dependence wi h women’s
posi ion in socie y, he c ucial aspec is a p og essi e end a ound he globe owa d eshaping ape
laws.20
Mo eo e , an undeniable nexus can be ound no only be ween cul u e and sexual iolence as
an ac , bu also o some ex en , be ween he iolence-p one cul u e and po nog aphy, o
“po nog aphy exp esses a hos ile and con emp uous a i ude owa d women”.21 Such a misogynis
ega ds owa ds women once again unde lines he gende ed pa adigm o he issue as well as ela ed
disc imina ion agains women. Thus, he eminis s’ allega ions, exp essed by Dwo kin22 and
MacKinnon,23 ha po nog aphy is a di ec cause o gende inequali y in needed o be aken unde
conside a ion.
Simila a gumen comes om Zillmann and B yan ’s s udy on he e ec s o massi e exposu e
o non- iolen po nog aphy on a i udes owa d women. This s udy showed an in e se ela ionship
be ween long- e m exposu e o sexually explici ilms and endo semen o sexual equali y.
The e o e, i po nog aphy os e s he belie ha he women do no dese e he equal igh s, i is
possible ha he widesp ead a ailabili y o sexually migh lead o disc imina o y p ac ices,24as i
happens in eali y and as i wo ks wi h he cases o sexual assaul .
Beyond he legal de ini ion o ape, which is no he subjec o discussion in his a icle,25 i s
socie al pe cep ion plays a emendous ole in he p o ec ion o women’s igh s, including he
p o ec ion o igh s o sexual au onomy and gende equali y in a pa icula cul u e. I is in his con ex
gains impo ance an obse a ion on he implica ion o social ac o s o concep ualizing ape om a
woman's pe spec i e as i had been done by he ou s anding eminis au ho s.
- Implica ion o social ac o s
Unde s anding he d i ing o ce and oo causes o a ape is an ini ial s ep o i s p e en ion.
As Susan B ownmille 26 belie ed, ape was p ima ily abou powe a he han sex. Despi e ecen
18 La y Ba on & Mu ay A. S aus, “Clinical C iminology, Rape and i s ela ion o social diso ganiza ion, po nog aphy
and inequali y in he USA”, Med Law, 1989;8(3):209-32.
19 Ezza A. Fa ah, “Vic imology: Pas , P esen and Fu u e” in C iminologie, P in emps, 2000, Vol. 33, No. 1, LA
VICTIMOLOGIE: QUELQUES ENJEUX, Uni e si é de Mon éal, p. 30.
20 Wojciech Jasiński, “De ining Rape. In Ques o he Op imal Solu ion”, in Consen and Sexual O enses, Compa a i e
Pe spec i es, edi ed by Elisa Ho en & Thomas Weigend, i s addi ion, 2022, p.12.
21 La y Ba on & Mu ay A. S aus, “Fou Theo ies o Rape, A Mac o-sociological analysis”, Social P oblems, Vol. 34,
No. 5, 1987, p. 470.
22 And ea Dwo kin, “Agains he male lood: censo ship, po nog aphy and equali y” Ha a d Women's Law Jou nal, 1985,
8:1-29.
23 Ca he ine MacKinnon, “No a mo al issue”, Yale Law and Policy Re iew”, 1984, 2:321-45.
24 La y Ba on & Mu ay A. S aus. “Fou Theo ies o Rape, A Mac o-sociological analysis”, Social P oblems, Vol. 34,
No. 5, 1987, p .472.
25 I is p esumable ha he eade is al eady amilia wi h he acknowledged de ini ion o ape, which is based on he lack
o consen as gi en in In e na ional Con ec ions. See: The Is anbul Con en ion, A icle 36.
26 See: Susan B ownmille , Agains Ou Will: Men, Women and Rape, 1975.
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c i icism, exp essed in con empo a y li e a u e owa ds such an a i ude,27 i is one o he i s
exposu e o eminis hough s upon he his o y and na u e o ape. Feminis mo emen om i s onse
has iewed ape as a “powe ip”, as a means o poli ical opp ession and social con ol o keep
women in hei place.28 Ca ha ine MacKinnon in he heo y,29 in di e ence om he p edecesso ,
a gued ha ape was he logical ex ension o a phallocen ic, pa ia chal sys em o sexual
inequali y.30 Acco dingly, in line wi h he eminis heo y, ape unc ions as a mechanism o social
con ol in pa ia chal socie ies.31
Ins ead o in olun a y sex, ape was de ined no jus as a c ime bu as an exe cise o gende ed
powe .32 Thus, in a b oade way, i can be asse ed ha “ ape is a social conce n wi h pa ia chal,
misogynis , and gende -shaming unde ones.”33
I obse ed ca e ully, qui e logical as well as empi ical connec ion can be d awn be ween he
legal and social unde s anding o he ape om women pe spec i e. A close look o he phenomenon
om he mode n pe spec i e elucida es how does disguised powe and con ol (powe and con ol
heo y, B ownmille ), as well as unequal powe ela ions be ween he sexes (gende inequali y
heo y, Mackinnon) c ea e he basis o concep ualizing sexual assaul , including ape.
Fo ins ance, con empo a y wo ding o ape de ini ion in Ge man C iminal Code34 wi h he
ph ase “agains he disce nible will” o he pe son, - a co e idea o he o ence,35 - albei s esses on
p o ec ion o sexual au onomy, is clea ly aligned o men ioned heo ies.
Also, iewed unde he lens o eminism, “a emale de ini ion o ape can be con ained in a
single sen ence. I a woman chooses no o ha e in e cou se wi h a speci ic man and he man chooses
o p oceed agains he will, ha is a c iminal ac o ape.”36 Al hough such a de ini ion o he ape is
p esumably equally acknowledged om women’s pe spec i e, i is no always he case o he
socie y wi h di e se cul u al backg ound. Un o una ely, in Geo gia oo, bo h a legal and
socio-cul u al le el ape is unde s ood as some hing exclusi ely o ce ul and coe ci e;37 whils i is
he absence o he consen o he ic im o in e cou se wha is o be quali ied as ape.
2. SHOULD EVER CULTURAL VALUES ENCOURAGE RAPE?
Reg e ully, he e a e ce ain o ms o iolence agains women ha a e embedded in speci ic
cul u al alues and belie s.38 Pa adoxically, he e a e pa icula p o isions in he legisla ions o some
27 Be e ly A. McPhail, “Feminis F amewo k Plus”, T auma, Violence & Abuse, Vol. 17, No. 3, Sage, 2016, p.317.
28 Vickie McNickle Rose, “Rape as a Social P oblem: A Byp oduc o he Feminis Mo emen ”, Ox o d Jou nal: Social
P oblems, Oc ., 1977, Vol. 25, No. 1, p.78.
29 See: Ca ha ine A. MacKinnon, Towa d a Feminis Theo y o he S a e, 1991.
30 In o ma ion a ailable a : h ps://philpape s.o g/b owse/ eminism- ape-and-sexual- iolence
31 La y Ba on & Mu ay A. S aus. “Fou Theo ies o Rape, A Mac o-sociological analysis”, Social P oblems, Vol. 34,
No. 5, 1987, p. 467.
32 Riikka Ko anen, “F om he p o ec ion o ma iage o he de ence o equali y, The Finnish deba e o e he sexual
au onomy o wi es” in Rape in he No dic Coun ies, Con inui y and Change, Rou ledge Resea ch in Gende and Socie y,
edi ed by Ma ie B u ik Heinskou, May-Len Skilb ei and Ka i S e ansen, Rou ledge, 2020, p. 92.
33 Kal a Gu inde & Bhug a Dinesh, “Sexual iolence agains women: Unde s anding c oss-cul u al in e sec ions”, Indian
Jou nal o Psychia y, 2013 July-Sep embe , 55(3): 244–249.
34 See: C iminal Code o Ge many, Sec ion 177(1). A ailable a :
h ps://www.gese ze-im-in e ne .de/englisch_s gb/englisch_s gb.h ml
35 Ta jana Hö nle, “The New Ge man Law on Sexual Assaul ” in Sexual Assaul : Law Re o m in a Compa a i e
Pe spec i e, edi ed by: Ta jana Hö nle, Ox o d Uni e si y, 2023, p. 145.
36 Susan B ownmille , Agains Ou Will: Men, Women and Rape, 1975, p.18.
37 I ine Khe kheulidze, “Sexual Violence: Compa a i e O e iew o Ge man and Geo gian Legal Pe spec i es”, TalTech
Jou nal o Eu opean S udies, Tallinn Uni e si y o Technology, Vol. 14, No. 1 (39), p.185.
38 A una Papp, “Conspi acy o Silence: “Honou -Based Violence in No h Ame ica”, 22 Bu . J. Gende L. & Soc. Policy,
105, 2013, p.115.
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coun ies, d i en by cul u al no ms and hus os e ing and a some ins ances e en jus i ying ape.
The abho en example o such an app oach is ma i al ape, which akes place in domes ic
en i onmen , whils ideally, he home mus be by a he mos secu e place o a woman and no he
place o mise y and o u e.
CEDAW Commi ee clea ly explains ha : “gende -based iolence agains women occu s in
all spaces and sphe es o human in e ac ion, whe he public o p i a e, including in he con ex s o
he amily”.39 Un o una ely, sexual iolence (including ape) as a o m o gende -based iolence is
he pain ul eali y, ha he conside able pa o ou globe’s emale popula ion aces wi h and which
cons i u es he subjec o examina ion in a ques o he e icien app oaches o i s e adica ion. Whils ,
ideally, cul u al alues and p ac ices should ha e os e ed o he empowe men o women and o he
p o ec ion o hei undamen al human igh s, a e e sed eali y is obse ed, i onically. On he
con a y o wha is wished upon, qui e equen ly and, in many communi ies, some cul u al no ms,
p ac ices, cus oms, adi ions and eligious alues a e used di ec ly o indi ec ly o jus i y iolence
agains women.40 “I is cul u e ha p o ides he sc ip o gende oles and he epe cussion o any
de ia ion om hese asc ibed oles”.41
Ma i al ape is he e y example whe e a do e ail o cul u e and gende , as a social ac o ,
builds an unjus i ied g ound o supp ession o women, disca ding hei choices and hus in inging
hei sexual au onomy. The e o e, in e ela edness o cul u al and social ac o s, hei in e ac ion on
ape – as on a o m o gende -based iolence - makes he emendous in luence on he pe cep ion,
e alua ion and punishmen o his o ence.
I is in his ela ion mus be no iced ha such a composi e has c ea ed obs acles o he
elimina ion o iolence agains women. G ounding hei s ance and app oaches on such social and
cul u al no ms, he legal sys ems o many coun ies ha e conside ed iolence be ween women and
men no a c ime, bu a amily dispu e ha should be esol ed wi hou he in e en ion o he s a e.42
One p io i y o 1970s eminism was o b ing iola ions ha occu ed in domes ic en i onmen o he
a en ion o poli icians and o make su e ha such c imes we e ecognized illegal, so ha hey o
an amoun wi h physical and sexual c imes ha ake place be ween s ange s.43 I is widely ag eed,
ha he in ima e ela ionships a e he mos common con ex o ape and hus physical and sexual
iolence o e laps e y o en makes ic ims ulne able o bo h - in ima e pa ne iolence and ape.
Globally, wide socie al awa eness o ape in ma iage ose s ep by s ep alongside he
second-wa e eminism, he enhancing c i icism o iolence agains women and he lack o s a e
in e en ion in bo h he p i a e sphe e and in in ima e ela ions.44 Finally i has led o he
c iminaliza ion o ma i al ape in he di e en pa s o he globe and no ably, in he US. By he end
o 1990-ies ma i al ape exemp ion ule inally decla ed o be oid in he Uni ed S a es.45 No
39 CEDAW, Gene al Recommenda ion No. 35 on gende -based iolence agains women, upda ing gene al
ecommenda ion No. 19, 2017, pa a. 20. A ailable a : h ps://www.ohch .o g/en/documen s/gene al-commen s-and-
ecommenda ions/ gene al- ecommenda ion-no-35-2017-gende -based
40 Bha a H. Desai & Moumi a Mandal, Sexual and Gende -Based Violence in In e na ional Law: Making In e na ional
Ins i u ions Wo k, Sp inge , 2022, p.157.
41 A una Papp, “Conspi acy o Silence: Honou -Based Violence in No h Ame ica”, 22 Bu . J. Gende L. & Soc. Policy,
105, 2013, p.115.
42 Ma i Ku anidze, Nino Ab amiS ili, Baia Pa a aia, Femicide - Femicide – Ha e C ime and he S a e’s Obliga ion o
Comba I , “SAPARI”, Tbilisi, 2016, p. 24.
43 May-Len Skilb ei, Ka i S e ansen & Ma ie B u ik Heinskou, “A No dic esea ch agenda on ape and sexual iolence”,
in Rape in he No dic Coun ies, Con inui y and Change, Rou ledge Resea ch in Gende and Socie y, edi ed by Ma ie
B u ik Heinskou, May-Len Skilb ei and Ka i S e ansen, Rou ledge, 2020, p.10.
44 Riikka Ko anen “F om he p o ec ion o ma iage o he de ence o equali y. The Finnish deba e o e he sexual au onomy
o wi es”, in Rape in he No dic Coun ies, Con inui y and Change, Rou ledge Resea ch in Gende and Socie y, edi ed by
Ma ie B u ik Heinskou, May-Len Skilb ei and Ka i S e ansen, Rou ledge, 2020, p. 83
45 PEOPLE . LIBERTA 64 N.Y.2d 152,474 N.E.2d 567,485 N.Y.S.2d 207(1984).
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Ge many has been he excep ion om he legisla ion ha jus i ied ma i al ape, a phenomenon,
which has been indo sed in Ge many un il 1979.46 The his o ical accep abili y o ma i al ape can be
explained by a combina ion o socio-legal ideologies and a i udes o ma iage, sexuali y and gende
inequali y.47
I onically, al hough ma i al ape as a phenomenon has ne e been a icula ed in na ional
legisla ion o Geo gia as a jus i ica ion o he emo al o c iminal cha ges om he
pe pe a o , - ape in ma iage, as an o ence has ne e been pu o wa d in p ac ice owing o i s
misleading social pe cep ion. No only in Geo gia, bu wo ldwide, adi ionally, “ ape in ma iage
was pe cei ed o be as impossible as a husband obbing himsel .”48 The Is anbul Con en ion wi h a
iew o changing such pe cep ions bo h om he side o he socie y and a lawmake , has manda ed
he a i ying coun ies subs an i e e ision o he ela ed legisla ion. Namely, i equi ed he s a es o
make he speci ic e o s o “ensu e ha he c iminal o ences o sexual iolence and ape es ablished
in acco dance wi h his Con en ion a e applicable o all non-consensual sexual ac s, i espec i e o
he ela ionship be ween he pe pe a o and he ic im… I is c ucial o ensu e ha he e a e no
excep ions o he c iminaliza ion and p osecu ion o such ac s when commi ed agains a cu en o
o me spouse o pa ne as ecognized by in e nal law.”49 Albei , co esponding ac s o ape had
been c iminalized since long ago in Geo gian C iminal Code,50 he absence o ela ed judgemen s
poin s ou o i s p ac ical non-execu ion. Rele an da a om police on epo ing o such c ime o
da a om p osecu ion o ice on p osecu ing i - indica ed ha such a beha io is pe cei ed as socially
condoned owing o i s accep ance as a no m by he communi y. This bi e eali y demons a es once
again how de as a ing can be cul u al iews and adi ions o he de elopmen o he equal igh s in
he coun y, whe e women a la ge a e hough o be subjec ed and submi ed o hei husband’s
sexual g a i ica ions and desi es.
3. SCRUTINIZING GENDER STEREOTYPES
Gende s e eo yping is one he oo -causes hampe ing he adequa e p o ec ion o women om
sexual iolence and p oli e a ing he injus ice in he cou oom. I s ole played in he ic imiza ion
and disc edi a ion o he women ic ims o he sexual iolence is emendous. Hence, i is a ask o
his chap e , o explain how his social phenomenon has been ou lined in sexual iolence case
ins ances, as well as in he CEDAW ju isdic ion and p ac ice.
In dep h p i a e-public dicho omy analysis o he exposu e o gende s e eo ypes
E en Di ision in o public and p i a e sphe e, albei in no ma i e ame, a some poin , can be
e alua ed as cul u ally s ipula ed. This is especially ue in connec ion wi h du ies, ac i i ies,
esponsibili ies, a ailabili ies, pe missions o banns o he pe sons o pa icula gende .
Such dualism be ween public and p i a e sphe es o ac i i y has been a cen al conce n o
libe al eminism as hey ied o show wha a de as a ing e ec i could ha e had o he in e es s o
46 Ta jana Hö nle, “The New Ge man Law on Sexual Assaul ” in Sexual Assaul : Law Re o m in a Compa a i e
Pe spec i e, edi ed by: Ta jana Hö nle, Ox o d Uni e si y, 2023, p.142.
47 Riikka Ko anen “F om he p o ec ion o ma iage o he de ence o equali y. The Finnish deba e o e he sexual au onomy
o wi es”, in Rape in he No dic Coun ies, Con inui y and Change, Rou ledge Resea ch in Gende and Socie y, edi ed by
Ma ie B u ik Heinskou, May-Len Skilb ei and Ka i S e ansen, Rou ledge, 2020, p. 85.
48 Ca ha ine A. MacKinnon, “Subs an i e equali y e isi ed: A eply o Sand a F edman”, In e na ional Jou nal o
Cons i u ional Law, Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, Vol. 14, No. 3 (2016-07), p. 746.
49 Explana o y Repo o he Is anbul Con en ion, pa a. 194. A ailable a :
h ps:// m.coe.in /ic-and-explana o y- epo /16808d24c6
50 C iminal Code o Geo gia, A icle 137.
A ailable a : h ps://ma sne.go .ge/en/documen /download/16426/157/en/pd
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women. The di e en ia ion o public and p i a e has no ma i e as well as desc ip i e dimension, as
a as g ea e legal and social signi icance is asc ibed o he public wo ld han o he p i a e.
Desc ibed dis inc ion made be ween he public and he p i a e o some ex en jus i ies and makes
na u al he di ision o labo and dis ibu ion o esou ces be ween he male and emale membe s o
he socie y. The endo semen and accep ance o such di ision in all a eas o knowledge ha e
suppo ed he p imacy and domina ion o he male wo ld o e women.51 Such a pa e n, in i s u n,
has se ed as a a o able basemen o he ein o cemen o adi ional gende and social no ms
ela ed o male supe io i y, which is mos p e alen ac o , ha is linked o high a es o sexual
o ences commi ed by men. “Because o such pe cep ions on gende oles, in many socie ies i has
been no malized o ecognize sexual in e cou se as a man’s igh in ma iage, and o assume, ha
women and gi ls a e esponsible o keeping men’s sexual u ges a bay o ha ape is a sign o
masculini y.” 52 Respec i ely, he ocus on he cu e o he p i a e-public dicho omy has been
c i icized o a numbe o easons, especially in a iew o he ac ha , concep s o he public and
p i a e a e no ixed bu complex, cul u ally de e mined, and shi ing.53 Thus eminism has made
signi ican explo a ions in p oblema izing wha conside s as he p i a e and he poli ical by easoning
ha ce ain p oblems a e no essen ially pe sonal bu socie al oo and he e o e some hing, which
law and policy should add ess.54Whils he language o he Is anbul Con en ion did e en mo e
h ough shi ing a ocus om legally de ined ac ions o cul u ally de ined adi ions, as o an obs acle
o he achie emen s o gende equali y.
Fo showing in e ela edness be ween socie y’s pe cep ion and sus ainabili y o gende -based
iolence, in a b oade con ex , he Is anbul Con en ion also clea ly de ined “gende ” as he “socially
cons uc ed oles, beha io s, ac i i ies and a ibu es ha a gi en socie y conside s app op ia e o
men and women”.55 The p og essi e language in hese de ini ions u ges a i ying pa ies o
acknowledge gende inequi ies and he ole o social cons uc s in applying he Is anbul Con en ion
p o isions o hei domes ic legisla ion.56 Such an a icula ed app oach on gende componen and i s
impo ance u ns he Is anbul Con en ion in o p omising mean o end up wi h de imen al e ec o
gende -based iolence o he women as a class – he issue s eadily highly p io i ized in he poli ical
agenda o in e na ional and egional o ganiza ions.
Fu he mo e, no only he women igh speci ic ea ies, bu he agenda 2030 on sus ainable
de elopmen has included among i s goals he achie emen o gende equali y and he empowe men
o all women and gi ls.57
Feminis w i e s ha e a gued ha public-p i a e dicho omy has bo h suppo ed and obscu ed
he s uc u al subo dina ion o women. The ole o law in he public sphe e is p o ec ion om ha m,
while i s ole in he p i a e domain is abou p ese ing and hus pe pe ua ing male au onomy. The
ocus o legal egula ion on he public sphe e has enabled he p i a e o emain ela i ely ee om
51 Ch is ine Chinkin, Feminism: App oach o In e na ional Law, Max Planck encyclopedias o in e na ional law, Ox o d
Public In e na ional Law (h p://opil.ouplaw.com), Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2023, p. 2, pa a. 7.
52h ps://apps.who.in /i is/bi s eam/handle/10665/77434/WHO_RHR_12.37_eng.pd ;jsessionid=EDC6BB6952951560D
B11C30157EFC51B?sequence=1 p.6.
53 Ch is ine Chinkin, Feminism: App oach o In e na ional Law, Max Planck encyclopedias o in e na ional law, Ox o d
Public In e na ional Law (h p://opil.ouplaw.com), Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2023, p. 4, pa a. 8.
54 Sha on A. Fi zGe ald & May-Len Skilb ei, Sexual Poli ics in Con empo a y Eu ope: Mo ing Ta ge s, Si ing Ducks.
Cham: Palg a e Macmillan, 2022. p.11.
55 The Is anbul Con en ion, A icle 3 (c).
56 Me edi h Kimelbla , “Reducing ha m ul e ec s o machismo cul u e on La in Ame ican domes ic iolence laws:
amending he con en ion o “Belem Do Pa a” o esemble The Is anbul Con en ion”, 49 Geo. Wash. In 'l L. Re . 405,
2016-2017, p.427.
57 Sa a de Vido, “The a i ica ion o he council o Eu ope Is anbul Con en ion by he EU: A s ep o wa d in he p o ec ion
o women om iolence in he Eu opean legal sys em”, 9 Eu . J. Legal S ud. 69, 2016-2017, p.74.
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S a e in e en ion so ha abuses commi ed he e, o ins ance - domes ic iolence - can be ela i ely
easily dis ega ded.58 Again, i was he Is anbul Con en ion, ha assu ed s a es o d aw a en ion a
he s uc u al subo dina ion,59 as o de imen al o women - as a class. Such subo dina ion os e s
di e en o ms o iolence agains women, which emana es om speci ic cul u al alues and
belie s.60 Some o he no iceable examples o such kind o iolence can be b ide bu ning61 o emale
geni al mu ila ion62, whils each o hem a e being s ongly ough agains by he means o
in e na ional law.
Human Righ s Commi ee in i s Gene al Commen No 28 (2000) on Equali y o Righ s
be ween Men and Women, equi ed S a es o “ epo on measu es o p o ec women om p ac ices,
ha iola e hei igh o li e, such as emale in an icide, he bu ning o widows and dow y killings”.63
Sexual o ences oo, including ape do no cons i u e an excep ion in his ela ion o a pa icula ype
o socie y, whose legal se ings al hough co e ly, bu s ill boldly ein o ces he g ound o
p ese a ion o he cul u al no ms suppo ing ou da ed in e p e a ion on sexual o ences.
The e a e cul u al ideologies ha suppo and sus ain social s uc u es, which pe mi and
condone speci ic o ms o iolence agains women.64Repa a ional ma iage, which ha e been
emo ed om I aly’s c iminal code only in 80-es65 and he Uni ed S a es’ “ma i al ape exemp ion
law” which ha e been abolished only in 90-es66 a e he clea examples o he un a o able cul u al
o pa icula s a es on he issue.
Dismissi e e ec s o cul u al belie s and s e eo ypes elucida ed by CEDAW
The clea es example o nega i e e ec s o cul u al belie es and s e eo ypes on he inal
assessmen o ape cases can be seen in CEDAW commi ee judgmen ega ding Ve ido case.67I
was he i s CEDAW communica ion in which w ong ul gende s e eo yping and S a es Pa ies’
obliga ions o elimina e ha p ac ice ha e been a cen al ocus.68 Commi ee e alua ed Judge
Eu opa’s easoning as s e eo ypical belie as i women should physically esis ape and o he o ms
o sexual assaul a e e y possibili y.69 In any ela ion, i mus be always conside ed ha gende
s e eo ypes in luence legisla ion on he o mula ion o no ms as well as on ac ions o he
58 Ch is ine Chinkin, Feminism: App oach o In e na ional Law, Max Planck encyclopedias o in e na ional law, Ox o d
Public In e na ional Law (h p://opil.ouplaw.com), Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2023, p. 4, pa a. 8.
59 Explana o y Repo o he Is anbul Con en ion, p eamble, pa a. 25.
60 A una Papp, “Conspi acy o Silence: Honou -Based Violence in No h Ame ica”, 22 Bu . J. Gende L. & Soc. Policy,
105 (2013), 115.
61 I is a o m o domes ic iolence sp ead in India and p ac iced in coun ies loca ed on o a ound Indian subcon inen .
62 I ine Khe kheulidze, “Gende ed aspec s in he c imes h ea ening human's li e and heal h - o ced s e iliza ion and FGM"
in Ac ual Ma e s o C iminal law, edi ed by N. Todua & M. I anidze, Tbilisi, 2020, pp. 145-304.
63 Ch is ine Chinkin, Feminism: App oach o In e na ional Law, Max Planck encyclopedias o in e na ional law, Ox o d
Public In e na ional Law (h p://opil.ouplaw.com), Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2023, p. 7, pa a. 20.
64 A una Papp, “Conspi acy o Silence: Honou -Based Violence in No h Ame ica”, 22 Bu . J. Gende L. & Soc. Policy,
105, 2013, p. 115.
65 Valen ina Ri a Sco i, “P o ec ing women om ape” in Reconside ing Gende Based-Violence and O he Fo ms o
Violence Agains Women, Compa a i e Resea ch/Analysis in he Ligh o The Is anbul Con en ion edi ed by G. Piccinelli,
I. Khe kheulidze, A. Bo oni, LibellulaEdizioni, 2017, p. 132.
66 Jill Lau ie Goodman, upda ed by Lynn Hech Scha an & Eliana Theodo ou, “In ima e Pa ne Sexual Assaul : An
O e looked Reali y o Domes ic Violence” in Lawye ’s Manual on Domes ic Violence Rep esen ing he Vic im, 6 h ed.,
edi ed by Ma y Ro hwell Da is, Do chen A. Leidhold & Cha lo e A. Wa son, 2015, pp. 68-69.
67 Ka en Tayag Ve ido . The Philippines (18/08), A ailable a : h ps://ju is.ohch .o g/casede ails/1700/en-US;
CEDAW/C/46/D/18/2008 (2010), a : h ps://documen s.un.o g/doc/undoc/gen/n10/545/58/pd /n1054558.pd
68 Simone Cusack and Alexand a S. H. Timme , “Gende S e eo yping in Rape Cases: The CEDAW Commi ee’s
Decision in Ve ido . The Philippines”, Human Righ s Law Re iew 11:2(2011), p. 336.
69 Simone Cusack and Alexand a S. H. Timme , “Gende S e eo yping in Rape Cases: The CEDAW Commi ee’s
Decision in Ve ido . The Philippines”, Human Righ s Law Re iew 11:2(2011), p. 332.
