Open Society Justice Initiative Expert Gives Senate Testimony on Rape as War Crime

Kelly Askin, the Open Justice Initiative senior legal officer on international justice, testified on April 1, 2008, before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law about rape as a weapon of war.

Askin called on Congress to strengthen United States laws to ensure that perpetrators can be prosecuted in the United States regardless of where the crime occurs, and to give more protection to victims of wartime sexual violence.

Speaking at the hearing, chaired by Senator Richard Durbin, Askin described "a crime that is destroying the lives of millions of individual victims, their families and communities in dozens of conflicts world wide but which is all too often ignored by those who can help." Her full testimony included an overview of the problem, a survey of related jurisprudence, and detailed recommendations.