It is therefore important that national legislation incorporate international...

It is therefore important that national legislation incorporate international criminal law, which provides for such acts and punishes their perpetrators. The Council must ensure that impunity is not the rule, but the exception. My country welcomes the fact that measures adopted by the United Nations to protect women and girls include guidelines that have been drawn up by the heads of military and police units in peacekeeping operations. The sanctions laid out therein against peacekeepers involved in cases of sexual violence meet the expectations of the international community and are designed to fully and completely protect vulnerable women and girls. The international community has deployed immense efforts to promote such protection, but it will be successful only if women are involved in the crucial processes of conflict settlement. Unfortunately, women's organizations and civil society are very often excluded from such processes. Yet the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) requires enhanced cooperation among Member States, international and regional security institutions, and civil society.