Dear Zainab. Sexual Violence in armed conflicts is an issue that seems to be far away from countries like Luxembourg. Could you give us a short insight into the extent of that kind of violence. What does sexual violence entail? And what regions are mostly concerned?
Sexual violence is an issue that affects everyone, whether it is happening in your country or a neighbouring country or halfway around the world. Sexual violence in conflict has been linked with displacement and the destabilization of neighbouring countries and regions as well as early and enforced marriage, human trafficking and organized crime. We have seen all of these manifestations in the conflict in Syria, for example. Hundreds of thousands of families fled the country to avoid the widespread sexual violence that was taking place there, and many families felt compelled to marry their daughters off to older men to protect them from sexual violence; many of these girls were then trafficked into the sex trade.
Sexual violence is also an economic issue because a country cannot pursue the development agenda when civilians are under constant threat of sexual assault. Conflict-related sexual violence is also a rule of law issue, a human rights issue, a social justice issue, a public health issue and an international peace and security issue. It strikes at the heart of the international treaties and agreements we have developed on how wars can be prosecuted and the rights afforded non-combatants during war so this is really an issue that should concern people all over the world no matter where it happens.
Rape in war is as old as war itself and we have seen it in the heart of Europe in Bosnia, in the Americas, in Asia and the Pacific and Africa; no part of the world is immune from this scourge. So we must make sure that we address it no matter where it happens and get to the root causes of this crime, or we run the risk of it happening again and again. Conflict-related sexual violence has devastated too many lives for too long, and we must stand up to say enough is enough.
Does sexual violence also concern men and children?
Men and children are victims of this crime as well as women. Men and boys are often attacked in the context of detention as a way to extract information or punish them for perceived or actual political affiliations. Children are routinely attacked and I have seen victims as young as 6 months old who are victims of this heinous crime. Men and children are also affected as witnesses of sexual violence. Can you imagine how devastating it must be for a husband to watch his wife being raped or a small girl to see her father or brother sexually abused? This crime devastates not only the victim, but their family members, the people who are witness to the atrocities as well as entire communities. Rape as a weapon of war is as effective as any bomb and as devastating as any bullet because it wreaks havoc on societies that continues long after the war has ended and the guns have fallen silent. These long term consequences can include sexually transmitted diseases and other reproductive and healthcare problems, depression and post-traumatic stress syndrome as well as marginalization and ostracism from society.
What can be done by the international community? What can a country like Luxembourg do?
In the last ten years we have seen the amazing impact that the international community can have when it comes together to stand up against conflict-related sexual violence. We now have a number of Security Council resolutions that have created the international legal framework needed to combat this crime. We have finally debunked the myth that sexual violence in conflict is an inevitable part of war, or the unfortunate collateral damage of conflict. This has been accomplished in large part by the work that has been done by countries like Luxembourg, which has used its position on the Security Council to advocate on this issue and advance the Women, Peace and Security agenda and has committed political will and financial resources to areas that help prevent and respond to sexual violence in conflict such as technical capacity building on the rule of law and services and support for victims.
And why is it important to organize public information and sensibilisation events like the conference on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women?
The only way that we will succeed in eradicating sexual violence in conflict is if everyone in society, from politicians, to teachers, to journalists, to religious leaders, to community activists, to medical personnel realizes the devastating impact of this crime and works together to stop it. We all pay a price when men, women and children are brutalized in war, and we all must live with the consequences of a crime that undermines peace and stability and makes achieving reconciliation and recovery much more difficult. Events like the conference on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women help people to educate people and increase the understanding that we are all in this fight together and we must be united in our efforts to stamp out this evil wherever it occurs, or we run the risk of repeating the grim and infamous history of this crime again and again.
Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict United Nations New York, NY – 8.11.2013
