General Women, Peace and Security

My delegation has therefore pledged to continue its financial support for the ICC Trust Fund for Victims, which adopts a gender-based perspective across all programmes and specifically aims to assist victims of all forms of sexual and gender-based violence. The Trust Fund provides direct assistance to victims, and thus has an immediate impact on the ground.

Violence against women in all its manifestations must be dealt with firmly and decisively. In that regard, my delegation reiterates Kenya's commitment to the full implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) and the follow-up resolutions.

The main thrust of resolution 1960 (2010) is the creation of an accountability system listing those parties credibly suspected of committing or responsible for patterns of sexual violence. Needless to say, there are no ongoing patterns of sexual violence in Kenya today, and none of the activities reported concerning Kenya took place during the current reporting period of 2010-2011.

Kenya welcomes the leadership shown by Togo in holding this debate during its presidency. The United Nations is commemorating the twelfth year since the unanimous adoption of resolution 1325 (2000) and two years since the adoption of resolution 1960 (2010). My delegation notes with satisfaction the commitment shown by Member States, the United Nations system, civil society and other actors in implementing those and related resolutions.

In conclusion, I wish to note that all over the world, many women are denied their social, economic, political and civil rights. They are systematically discriminated against because of their gender. While I reaffirm Kenya's commitment to implementing resolutions 1325 (2000) and 1960 (2010), there is a nexus between violence against women and the economic and power structure.

We also appreciate that, for the first time, the report lists parties that are
credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of rape and
other forms of sexual violence in situations of armed conflict, as per the
Security Council agenda. Japan strongly condemns the parties listed and calls
on them to make specific, time-bound commitments to ceasing acts of sexual

As the Special Representative has pointed out on many occasions, sexual violence
is never a by-product of conflict, and it can be prevented. We should focus more
on the prevention side of the issue. Japan welcomes the framework of early
warning signs specific to conflict-related sexual violence that has been
developed based on collective analysis by the broader membership of the United

Thirdly, prevention is always key. The SecretaryGeneral's report also serves this purpose, as it provides the information needed not only to react, but first and foremost to prevent. We look forward to the progressive strengthening of the monitoring, analysis and reporting arrangements mandated by resolution 1960 (2010).

Secondly, as committed as we are to targeting the perpetrators of sexual violence, we must give full priority to the health, safety and dignity of survivors. National and international programmes for postconflict reconstruction must ensure that their needs are met and voices heard. Adequate and timely resources are required to sustain processes that are meant to be lengthy and complex.

Fourthly, there is a need to systematically include the issue of conflict-related sexual violence in the work of the Council, especially when authorizing and renewing the mandates of peacekeeping and special political missions. The progressive deployment of women's protection advisers to United Nations missions is also critical.