Rape

This article is about a form of human sexual assault. For rape among non-human animals, see Sexual coercion among animals. For other uses, see Rape (disambiguation).
The Rape of Tamar by Eustache Le Sueur, c. 1640
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Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person who is incapable of giving valid consent, such as one who is unconscious, incapacitated, has an intellectual disability, or is below the legal age of consent (statutory rape).[1][2] The term rape is sometimes casually inaccurately used interchangeably with the term sexual assault.[3]

The rate of reporting, prosecuting and convicting for rape varies between jurisdictions. Internationally, the incidence of rapes recorded by the police during 2008 ranged, per 100,000 people, from 0.2 in Azerbaijan to 92.9 in Botswana with 6.3 in Lithuania as the median.[4] Worldwide, reported instances of sexual violence, including rape, are primarily committed by males against females.[5] Rape by strangers is usually less common than rape by people the victim knows, and male-on-male prison rapes are common and may be the least reported forms of rape.[6][7][8]

Widespread and systematic rape (e.g., war rape) and sexual slavery can occur during international conflict. These practices are crimes against humanity and war crimes. Rape is also recognized as an element of the crime of genocide when committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a targeted ethnic group.

People who have been raped can be traumatized and develop post-traumatic stress disorder.[9] Serious injuries can result along with the risk of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. A person may face violence or threats from the rapist, and, sometimes, from the victim's family and relatives.[10][11][12]

  1. ^ "Chapter 6: Sexual Violence" (PDF). World Health Organization. 2002. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
  2. ^ Schulhofer, Stephen J. (2017). "Reforming the Law of Rape". Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality. 35: 335.
  3. ^ Petrak, Jenny; Hedge, Barbara, eds. (2003). The Trauma of Sexual Assault Treatment, Prevention and Practice. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons. p. 2. ISBN 978-0-470-85138-8.
  4. ^ "Rape at the National Level, number of police recorded offenses". Archived 2013-10-29 at the Wayback Machine United Nations.
  5. ^ "Violence against women". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  6. ^ Human Rights Watch No Escape: Male Rape In U.S. Prisons. Part VII. Anomaly or Epidemic: The Incidence of Prisoner-on-Prisoner Rape. Archived 2014-09-03 at the Wayback Machine; estimates that 100,000–140,000 violent male-male rapes occur in U.S. prisons annually; compare with FBI statistics Archived 2008-09-16 at the Wayback Machine that estimate 90,000 violent male-female rapes occur annually.
  7. ^ Robert W. Dumond, "Ignominious Victims: Effective Treatment of Male Sexual Assault in Prison," August 15, 1995, p. 2; states that "evidence suggests that [male-male sexual assault in prison] may be a staggering problem". Quoted in Mariner, Joanne; (Organization), Human Rights Watch (2001-04-17). No escape: male rape in U.S. prisons. Human Rights Watch. p. 370. ISBN 978-1-56432-258-6. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
  8. ^ Struckman-Johnson, Cindy; David Struckman-Johnson (2006). "A Comparison of Sexual Coercion Experiences Reported by Men and Women in Prison". Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 21 (12): 1591–1615. doi:10.1177/0886260506294240. ISSN 0886-2605. PMID 17065656. S2CID 27639359.; reports that "Greater percentages of men (70%) than women (29%) reported that their incident resulted in oral, vaginal, or anal sex. More men (54%) than women (28%) reported an incident that was classified as rape."
  9. ^ "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Rape Survivors". The American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. 1995. Retrieved 2013-04-30.
  10. ^ "Rape victim threatened to withdraw case in UP". Zeenews.india.com. 2011-03-19. Retrieved 2013-02-03.
  11. ^ "Stigmatization of Rape & Honor Killings". WISE Muslim Women. 2002-01-31. Archived from the original on 2012-11-08. Retrieved 2013-02-03.
  12. ^ Harter, Pascale (2011-06-14). "BBC News – Libya rape victims 'face honour killings'". BBC News. Retrieved 2013-02-03.