Sexual violence is at the heart of humanitarian concern: faces used in NGO communication, protection of women's rights, operational policies of international agencies, the terminology used to describe what is often taboo. These issues have grown considerably over the past fifteen years, making the issue – notably rape in situations of war – a recurring theme in the discourse of humanitarians.
In this article, Françoise Duroch looks at feminine representations – women often viewed through the lens of motherhood – in humanitarian communication. She also analyzes MSF’s appropriation of the concept of "violence against women".
