This report on Men of Hope’s ground-breaking activities emerges from our ongoing DFID-funded collaborative study with the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Sussex, and was written by Jerker Edström, Chris Dolan and Thea Shahrokh, with Onen David. It explores one central question, namely: ‘What makes it possible for male survivors of conflict-related sexual violence to organise and become activists, challenging discriminatory social and gender norms?’
The study finds that, despite pervasive discrimination, this group of male survivors has been able to develop resilience and mutual support through collective action. Further, the study finds that third-party service providers and non-governmental organisations can play an important support role in reinforcing the resilience and capacity of male survivors to organise collectively.