Episode Details

Despite clear legal prohibitions, sexual violence remains widespread and prevalent during armed conflicts and other situations of violence, with grave humanitarian consequences. Sexual violence is often utilized as a tactical or strategic means of overwhelming and weakening the adversary, whether directly or indirectly, by targeting the civilian population. In this post to mark the 30th campaign of the 16 Days of Action, ICRC historian Daniel Palmieri examines ICRC inaction during the mid-20th century – and the Swiss cultural backdrop against which the organization operated at that time – to unearth contextual and structural factors that contributed to this glaring historical passivity.