Effective prevention begins with the facts. Through human rights monitoring a...

Effective prevention begins with the facts. Through human rights monitoring and reporting, we are able to build up a detailed picture of the situation on the ground, anticipate emerging threats and take appropriate preventive action in a timely manner. Time and again, human rights reports and their recommendations have provided the basis for decision making by heads of missions, whether in relation to responses to immediate threats, longer term preventive measures or following up with relevant national authorities and international actors. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for example, the preliminary report on the horrific mass rapes that took place in Walikale in August 2010, which was released on 24 September by the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office, was a key document in helping to establish the facts and identify protection gaps. In the week following the publication of the report, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo set up two additional temporary operating bases in Binyampuri, deployed additional staff and equipment and stepped up day and night patrols in the area. These actions have reportedly provided much needed reassurance to local populations.