Sex, Public Health and Colonial Control: The Campaign Against Venereal Diseases in Germany's Overseas Possessions, 1884-1914

In the latter part of the nineteenth century, venereal diseases were seen not only as a problem in Germany, but also in its colonial empire. In Germany, doctors believed that through their scientific training and education they could be successful in fighting VD through the use of a biopolitics aimed to educate and regulate the bodies of targeted groups. They approached the problem in the colonies from a similar perspective. However, the colonial setting was different from the homeland, which meant that policies pursued in Germany had to be modified overseas. In the end, they achieved a greater degree of supervision over targeted bodies than their peers at home. Accordingly, the goal of subjectifcation, though not entirely abandoned, assumed secondary importance behind the perceived need for more coercive methods.