The Instrumentalization of Gender-Based Violence in Warfare: A Comparative Study of Old, New, And Future Wars

Abstract Book of the 8th Global Conference on Women's Studies

Year: 2026

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The Instrumentalization of Gender-Based Violence in Warfare: A Comparative Study of Old, New, And Future Wars

Christina Zhang

ABSTRACT:

This paper investigates how gender-based violence (GBV) has been systematically employed as a strategic tool in warfare across three distinct eras—Old Wars, New Wars, and Future Wars. The objective is to trace the evolution of GBV’s functions in armed conflict and to develop a feminist theoretical framework that accounts for historical continuity and technological transformation in the perpetration of gendered violence. In doing so, the paper also aims to identify critical points of intervention—both theoretical and policy-based—to better anticipate, prevent, and address GBV in both contemporary and future conflict settings. Using a comparative and interdisciplinary approach, the study integrates historical analysis, case study evaluation, and feminist theoretical critique. It applies three feminist lenses—Patriarchal Feminism (for Old Wars), Intersectional Feminism (for New Wars), and Posthuman Feminism (for Future Wars)—to analyze how GBV manifests under different structural, ideological, and technological conditions. Key case studies include the Nanjing Massacre, the Rwandan Genocide, and the Yugoslav Wars. Emerging warfare technologies such as autonomous weapon systems (AWS) and AI-based surveillance are analyzed through a posthuman feminist lens. The research finds that GBV has consistently served as a mechanism of domination, humiliation, and identity erasure in warfare. In Old Wars, GBV was a state-sanctioned extension of patriarchal conquest. In New Wars, it became a tool of ethnonationalist violence and genocide, particularly targeting multiply marginalized identities. In the context of Future Wars, GBV is evolving into algorithmic and structural forms embedded in surveillance and targeting systems—making the violence less visible but no less harmful. Across all eras, GBV is revealed not as a breakdown of wartime norms but as an integral part of militarized logic. The study concludes that gender-based violence in warfare is a historically persistent and technologically adaptable instrument of patriarchal power. It recommends that feminist theory and international law must evolve to recognize both the continuity and transformation of GBV in conflict. Specifically, posthuman feminist perspectives are urgently needed to address emerging threats posed by autonomous systems and algorithmic warfare. Furthermore, transitional justice mechanisms should move beyond reactive models to develop proactive, intersectional strategies that anticipate new forms of violence in the digital era.

Keywords: Gender-Based Violence; Feminist Theory