Great Lakes: The impact of HIV on the rape crisis in the African Great Lakes region

Rape by soldiers has long been a crime under national military codes, but international law has only recently come to recognize its use as a tool of war. This responsive approach succeeded in bringing rape from a prohibition in national military codes, to the categorization of rape as a form of torture, and finally recognizing rape as an independent crime under international law. While this advancement in the law cannot be minimized, it is critical at this time, and in response to ongoing circumstances, to review the legal parameters of the crime of rape and re-evaluate its efficacy.