June 19 marks the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict. The day was established by the UN General Assembly in 2015. Its goal is to shed light on the issue of conflict-related sexual violence. The sort of violence it focuses on includes: “rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced abortion, enforced sterilization, forced marriage and any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity perpetrated against women, men, girls or boys that is directly or indirectly linked (temporally, geographically or causally) to a conflict.” The date was deliberately chosen to commemorate UN Security Council Resolution 1820 (2008) which first recognized the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, rather than an unintended consequence of war.
Sunuara, 25, poses for a photo on December 2, 2017, in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. She fled to ... [+]
While sexual violence continues to be a significant element of conflicts, and indeed, a weapon of war, some states have been doubling their efforts address the issue. In recent years, the U.K. has lead initiatives to address instances of rape and violence against women and girls in conflict. In 2017, in cooperation with the U.N. Special Representative on Sexual Violence Pramila Patten and others, the U.K. launched “The Principles for Global Action: preventing and addressing stigma associated with conflict-related sexual violence.” In November 2018, the U.K. hosted the “Fight Stigma Through Film” movie festival, providing a platform which enabled survivors of sexual and gender-based violence to tell their story. In November 2019, the U.K. was due to host the next global Prevent Sexual Violence in Conflict event, entitled “Time for Justice: Putting Survivors First.” To accompany the announcement of the event, Lord Ahmad said that: “For too long, the issue of sexual violence in conflict has been left in the shadows. The stigma has been seen as inevitable; the pain immeasurable. Our shared aim must be to place the stigma attached to sexual violence where it rightfully belongs – on the perpetrators. Now is the time to act.”
The event was postponed due to general elections and again, because of the COVID-19 outbreak. However, it is hoped that the conference will not be abandoned all together. The primary objective of the event, and of associated initiatives, was to address the shortcomings of existing mechanisms for ensuring justice for the victims and survivors. The event was to focus entirely upon the issue of securing justice for survivors, more effective prosecutions of the perpetrators for their atrocities and with specific focus on rape and sexual violence in conflict. Among other stakeholders, the U.K. was seeking to secure commitments to:
“Strengthen investigation of conflict-related sexual violence in support of national and international criminal justice processes; and,
Champion wider restorative justice efforts for survivors, including support to the Mukwege Foundation’s International Fund for Survivors of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence.”
Furthermore, the U.K. planned to launch two important documents. First, the Murad Code (named after Nadia Murad, a survivor of Daesh atrocities and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate) which aims to ensure that the bodies engaged in collecting and preserving evidence of the atrocities, adhere to international standards and best practice. Second, a “Declaration of Humanity” which engages international leaders of faith and belief to work towards ending sexual violence in conflict and to tackle the stigma so often faced by survivors. The two-day conference was to engage survivors of the atrocities, a diverse cross section of civil society, governments, parliamentarians and international organizations, and it was to be followed by an inclusive, high level ministerial plenary event to secure commitments to action addressing the issue. The hope is that after the COVID-19 pandemic, the initiative will be revived.
COVID-19 pandemic cannot distract us from the urgent need to eliminate sexual violence in conflict. However, as the UN reports “COVID-19 hampers the possibility of survivors to report sexual violence and further exacerbates the existing structural, institutional and sociocultural barriers to reporting such crimes.” This will further hinder victim’s access to justice.
Ensuring justice for the victims and survivors will empower them to move on with their lives and to build a future that is not grounded in the stigma of the atrocities they have been subjected to. Survivors must feel empowered to speak up and to speak out about the violence they have endured. They should to refuse to be silenced by the stigma associated with such crimes. Impunity will not achieve this. Enabling the survivors to speak and for us to hear their voices should be our priority. Allowing the perpetrators to enjoy impunity, sends the wrong message, that the gender and sexual violence that they perpetrate means nothing. Bringing the perpetrators to justice and allowing the survivors to participate in the process (by having their day in court to tell their stories) gives the survivors essential assurance that their pain is not ignored.
