Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

The Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) theme focuses on the incidence and prevalence of violence against women in conflict and post-conflict settings. Polarisation of gender roles, proliferation of weapons, militarisation, and the breakdown of law influence SGBV.

The risk of SGBV is heightened during conflict by aggravating factors, including the polarization of gender roles, the proliferation of arms, the militarization of society, and the breakdown of law and order. The subsequent long-term and complex impacts of SGBV continue to affect individuals and communities after conflict ends.

SGBV is addressed in all five resolutions on Women, Peace and Security. In SCR 1888, the Security Council expresses its intention to ensure peacekeeping mandate resolutions contain provisions on the prevention of, and response to, sexual violence, with corresponding reporting requirements to the Council (OP11). The resolutions deal with protecting women from violence (1820,OP3, 8-10; 1888,OP3,12); strengthening local and national institutions to assist victims of sexual violence (1820,OP13; 1888,OP13); and including strategies to address sexual violence in post-conflict peacebuilding processes (1820,OP11). SCR 1820 also calls for the participation of women in the development of mechanisms intended to protect women from violence (OP10).

Lastly, SCR 1960 creates institutional tools and teeth to combat impunity and outlines specific steps needed for both the prevention of and protection from conflict-related sexual violence. The new “naming and shaming,” listing mechanism mandated in the Resolution is a step forward in bringing justice for victims and a recognition that sexual violence is a serious violation of human rights and international law.

Addressing SGBV is an integral aspect of the overall Women, Peace and Security agenda. SGBV affects the health and safety of women, and also has significant impact on economic and social stability. The Security Council recognises that sexual violence can threaten international peace and security, and that it is frequently used as a tactic of war to dominate, humiliate, terrorise, and displace.

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BURMA:Religious Persecution, Rape Still Evident in Kachin State

Sixty-six Christian churches have been burnt down in Kachin state since the conflict erupted in June 2011, according to the Kachin Women's Association of Thailand (KWAT), a figure that is backed by Myitkyina-based Kachin Baptist Convention.

Speaking at a seminar at Chiang Mai University on Friday, Julia Marip of KWAT said that the burning of churches by Myanmar government forces amounts to religious persecution.

SRI LANKA: Sri Lanka Security Forces Rape, Torture Tamil Detainees - Group

Sri Lanka's security forces have used rape to torture and extract confessions from suspected Tamil separatists almost four years after the country's civil war ended, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report on Tuesday.

BURMA: Rapes by Burmese Security Forces 'May Cause More Strife' in Troubled Region

At least 13 women, including teenagers, have been subjected to prolonged rape by Burmese security forces in a remote village in the western state of Arakan. Human rights groups have warned that the incident threatens to trigger further violence in a region where several waves of ethno-religious rioting since June last year have killed more than 1,000 people.

PAKISTAN: Growing Risks for Aid Workers in Pakistan

PESHAWAR, 7 January 2013 (IRIN) - There was no warning when gunmen killed seven aid workers with local NGO Support With Working Solution (SWWS) in the Swabi District of Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Province on 1 January.

CAMBODIA: Acid Attack Perpetrator Sentenced under New Cambodian Law

Nhem Sreyda feels fortunate that she is still able to see after being doused with acid by her ex-husband in 2012. "I am lucky that my body can still work, my eyes can still see," the 32-year-old told IRIN.

INTERNATIONAL/SYRIA: U.N. Calls on Syria to End Sexual Violence

A senior U.N. official called on both sides of the conflict in Syria to put an end to all forms of sexual violence.

In a statement, the special representative of the secretary-general on sexual violence in conflict, Zainab Hawa Bangura, also called for the release of all abducted women and children, the United Nations said in a release Friday.

SYRIA: Syrians Freed in Abductions that Stoked Fears of More Strife

The tit-for-tat kidnappings of more than 140 people have provoked fears of expanded sectarian conflict in Syria's northern Idlib Province in recent days, but one set of hostages was released in good condition on Saturday after negotiations between residents of two of the affected villages, according to a rebel commander.

MALI: Mali's Sexual Violence Victims Left to Themselves

Many women have been forced to leave their homes in northern Mali as they fled from the sexual violence of the rebels. They are finding it hard to move forward with their lives, with little support for themselves, and little chance of seeing the perpetrators punished.

AFGHANISTAN: Women, Girls Increasingly Victims in Afghan War, UN Says

Afghan women and girls are increasingly victims of violence with a 20 percent increase last year in the number killed or injured even though the number of civilian casualties fell for the first time in years, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

LEBANON: Lebanese Women take on Muslim Judges Who Call Rape a 'Marital Right'

Lebanese women are taking to the streets to demand that the government takes domestic violence seriously, by introducing laws to protect women from abusive partners.

Nadine Mouwad, a founder of feminist collective Nasawiya, says the prevalence of unveiled, glamorous women in Beirut can create the impression that Lebanon is more liberated from patriarchal cultural attitudes than neighboring countries.

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