We revile sexual violence but misogynistic populists thrive around the world | Anne McElvoy

The peace prize was well deserved. Yet the language of too many political leaders seems driven by the compulsion to demean women

The Nobel peace prize often gets it wrong, routinely crowning “approved” individuals or supranational institutions such as the EU and UN, usually on the eve of them making a prizewinning Horlicks of their mission.

But even grumblers like me cheered this year’s decision by the Swedish and Norwegian gods of good works. Presenting the joint award to Nadia Murad, a 25-year-old survivor of rape and torture by Isis and campaigner for other persecuted Yazidi Kurdish minority, and to Denis Mukwege, a doctor who has treated many thousands of victims of rape and sexual violence in Congo, has highlighted the horrors of sexual violence in warfare. It has also given a fillip to those seeking better legal structures to bring perpetrators to justice and deter others.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Pgirik
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