One third of US military women raped

In 2008, 62 percent of those convicted of sexual assault or rape received punishments such as demotion, suspension, or a written reprimand. “Almost a third of all women serving are raped, and over two thirds sexually assaulted, this problem is rampant and systemic,” National Public Radio has reported. "Everybody's supposed to have a battle buddy in the army, and females are supposed to have one to go to the latrines with, or to the showers - that's so you don't get raped by one of the men on your own side. But because I was the only female there, I didn't have a battle buddy. My battle buddy was my gun and my knife,'' Army specialist Chantelle Henneberry said. Back in 2003, a survey of female veterans suggested that 30 percent of the women serving had been raped, while a study conducted in the following year on veterans seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder indicated that 71 percent of the women said they had been sexually assaulted or raped while serving. Jamie Leigh Jones recently reported that she had been gang-raped back in 2005, and had received severe injuries. An amendment has been added to the defense appropriations bill by Sen. Al Franken. According to the amendment, defense contractors will be required to allow employees, wherever stationed, to access American courts in cases of rape or assault.