Conflict minerals and sexual violence in Central Africa: Troubling research

Abstract

This paper explores “conflict mining-related sexual violence” as a type of conflict sexual violence, tracing the dynamic process by which this category is defined in and through the production of research. Focusing on two “conflict minerals” initiatives, I explore how data on sexual violence are positioned as an indicator for assessing armed conflict and human rights abuses in mining areas in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. I trace the methodological decisions and epistemic claims that shape what is knowable about mining-related sexual violence and which erase the significant methodological challenges in researching sexual- and gender-based violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.