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Deconstructing Characterizations of Rape, Marriage, and Custom in South Africa: Revisiting The Multi-Sectoral Campaign Against Ukuthwala

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 March 2020

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Abstract

A critique of multi-sectoral responses to the customary practice of ukuthwala (the isiXhosa term for abduction for purposes of marriage) in South Africa highlights attention to gendered tropes pertaining to marriage, custom, and sexual assault. Karimakwenda deconstructs how, in its inflexible framing of customary practice, the multi-sectoral campaign against violent forms of ukuthwala lacks historicization and silences women’s narratives. By obscuring historical and locally-embedded linkages between marriage practices and rape, the myopic campaign energizes collective anxieties around representations of violence within Black communities, and fuels misconceptions surrounding marital rape. This critique contributes to debates about gender, violence, and state power by offering a counter-narrative to simplified characterizations of sexual violence and custom.

Résumé

Résumé

une critique des réponses multisectorielles à la pratique coutumière de l'ukuthwala (le terme isiXhosa pour l'enlèvement à des fins de mariage) en Afrique du Sud met en évidence l'attention portée aux tropes sexospécifiques concernant le mariage, la coutume et l'agression sexuelle. Karimakwenda déconstruit comment, dans son cadre inflexible de la pratique coutumière, la campagne multisectorielle contre les formes violentes d’ukuthwala manque d’historicisation et réduit au silence les récits des femmes. En masquant les liens historiques et ancrés localement entre les pratiques matrimoniales et le viol, cette campagne à courte vue alimente les angoisses collectives autour des représentations de la violence au sein des communautés noires et alimente les idées fausses entourant le viol conjugal. Cette critique contribue aux débats sur le genre, la violence et le pouvoir de l'État en offrant un contre-récit à des caractérisations simplifiées de la violence sexuelle et de la coutume.

Resumo

Resumo

Análise crítica das respostas multissetoriais à prática comum da ukuthwala (palavra xossa para designar o rapto com fins de casamento), na África do Sul, Karimakwenda sublinha a sua relação com o casamento, a tradição e a violência sexual. A autora demonstra que, devido ao modo inflexível como enquadra as práticas tradicionais, a campanha multissetorial contra as formas violentas da ukuthwala é desprovida de contextualização histórica e silencia as narrativas femininas. Ao ignorar as profundas ligações históricas e locais entre práticas de casamento e violação, a visão limitada da campanha potencia a ansiedade coletiva em torno das representações de violência entre as comunidades negras, e suscita vários equívocos acerca da violação marital. Esta análise crítica contribui para os debates acerca das questões de género, da violência e do poder do Estado, propondo uma contranarrativa para as caracterizações simplistas da violência sexual e da tradição.

Keywords

rapecustomukuthwalamarriageSouth Africasexual violence
Type
Article
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 63 , Issue 4 , December 2020 , pp. 763 - 781
Copyright
© African Studies Association, 2020

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