Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

In that respect, the Commission to Clarify Past Human Rights Violations and Acts of Violence That Have Caused the Guatemalan Population to Suffer indicated in its final report that the absolute impunity protecting those responsible for sexual violations increased women's insecurity and contributed to the victims' not reporting the facts.

In that context, the recommendations issued by the Human Rights Committee to Argentina on bringing the crimes of the recent dictatorship to trial covered gender-based crimes as well.

In conclusion, allow me to refer briefly to sexual violence in conflicts and to the autonomous nature, specificity and separate nature of sexual crimes, and how they should be viewed differently from other crimes such as torture or cruelty.

In 2012, the United Nations stated that, whatever the geography of conflict and its structural causes, from Côte d'Ivoire to Mali and from Libya to those affected by the earthquake in Haiti — in every instance — over 70 per cent of those displaced were been women and children. We know that women in camps, women refugees and displaced women are particularly at risk of becoming victims of violence, exploitation and poverty.

I think that remembering, truth, justice and reparation — I say that to you, Madam President, in particular — is the only way to put an end to impunity. Certainly, Rwanda, Argentina and all countries that have suffered extreme violence know that remembering is the basis for moving forward in order to prevent the repetition of such events today, tomorrow, yesterday and forever.

However, UN-Women recently announced that, of the 585 peace agreements signed between 1990 and 2010, only 16 per cent mentioned women. Seventeen per cent refer to gender equality, and only 3 per cent make any reference at all to gender-based sexual violence.

Allow me to refer to work that has been carried out in my country, known as “Cracks in the Silence”, by the women's organization CLADEM, which has investigated sexual violence against women during the period of State terrorism in my country. The investigation helped to reveal the sexual crimes committed during that cruel and painful period.

We agree with the need for security-sector reform, which should include training in human rights, particularly the human rights of women and children, and take into account the need to prevent sexual violence.

On the other hand, the generalized indifference in investigating acts of violence against women leads directly to impunity, increasing the situation of insecurity and fear among women.

My country aligns itself with and supports the proposal to establish an appropriate monitoring mechanism within the Security Council on the problem of sexual violence in conflict.