By Neelanjana Mukhia

Increasingly we see evidence on the prevalence of rape and how rape increases women’s and girls’ risk to HIV.  It confirms for us that rape and sexual violence is endemic; in 2002 WHO said 1 in 5 women will be raped or will be a victim of attempted rape in the world.  International women’s human rights instruments have resulted in legislation on violence against women in many countries, however, many are not implemented, enforced, and resourced, with the same zeal as say, the prevention and containment of the H1N1 virus, aka the swine flu.  We have to ask ourselves why that is.