Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

The past debates of the Council on women and peace and security in which Fiji has participated have focused on the broader implementation of resolution 1325 (2000). The current report of the Secretary-General focuses on sexual violence in conflict, bringing into sharper focus the work needed for the implementation of the subsequent resolutions, in particular resolutions 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009) and 1960 (2010).

Fiji is committed to the elimination of sexual violence and to working both domestically and with the international community to do so. At the national level, Fiji's Ministry of Women has revived the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Elimination of Violence against Women to coordinate policy responses across all Government agencies.

Eliminating sexual violence is crucial, because only in the absence of sexual and other forms of violence will the empowerment of women be possible so as to achieve gender equality. Women in our communities are change-makers and core to the functioning of our communities.

At the international level, Fiji's commitment to eliminating sexual violence is expressed primarily through its peacekeeping efforts. Fiji sends police peacekeepers to missions where the mandate includes capacity-building of local security institutions.

Accordingly, I would like to conclude by restating Fiji's steadfast commitment to working with the international community to implement resolution 1325 (2000) and subsequent resolutions.

We support the continued application of targeted and graduated measures by the relevant Security Council Sanctions Committees aimed at perpetrators of sexual violence in conflict, as well as other measures at the Council's disposal, including referrals to the ICC, mandating commissions of inquiry and further steps towards ensuring systematic monitoring of commitments by parties to conflict under its resolution 1960 (2010).

We strongly condemn the systematic and widespread use of sexual violence, referred to in the report, which is used to punish, intimidate and subjugate women and girls in Mali, as well as the use of rape as a tactic of war in rebel-controlled zones.

The recently adopted United Nations Arms Trade Treaty states that the risk of conventional arms being used to commit or facilitate serious acts of gender- based violence needs to be taken into account by its State parties. That reaffirms that sexual violence needs, from the start, to be considered as part of all actions to ensure international peace and security in order for them to be effective.

The European Union now has gender advisors and/or human rights focal points in each of its crisis management missions and operations throughout the world. We continue our work on specific training modules on human rights and gender in crisis management, while ensuring a focus on sexual violence in armed conflicts.

The European Union and its member States highly appreciate the work of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict and the United Nations Team of Experts on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict, including its coordination with other international entities such as Justice Rapid Response and the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, as well as the recent commitments of the Group of Eight to do m