The very nature of violence during armed conflict requires that due attention...

The very nature of violence during armed conflict requires that due attention be paid to all of its manifestations. The issue of women, peace and security should be addressed through a comprehensive approach, as set out in resolution 1325 (2000). Sexual violence is a particular manifestation of violence that clearly requires firm condemnation and severe punishment. The careful investigation of all incidents and the punishment of perpetrators is a guarantee of success in combating this egregious crime. Of particular concern are situations where sexual violence is widespread. However, sexual violence is far from being a root cause of an outbreak of conflict; it is, rather, a symptom of the impunity that prevails during armed conflict. Some of those situations, as we know, pose a threat to international peace and security, and it follows that they require the intervention of the Security Council. But attempts to artificially impose on the Security Council the duty to address the issue of sexual violence in all of its aspects will lead not only to imbalances in system-wide coherence but to an erosion of the legitimacy and importance of Council decisions on grave, complex and urgent issues. Let us not forget that the issue of countering sexual violence is, in the framework of existing mandates, taken up not only by the Council but also by other United Nations bodies, in particular the General Assembly, the Human Rights Council and the Commission on the Status of Women.