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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COLOMBIA: Colombia's New Domestic Violence Law

A law obliging Colombian authorities to investigate reports of domestic violence and alimony evasion will be presented in the Senate, local media reported Tuesday.

Under the new law, once a party has filed a domestic violence report he or she will not be able to withdraw it or reconcile the case outside of the law.

LATIN AMERICA: UNHCR Chief Visits Ecuador Ahead of World Refugee Day

UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres returned to Ecuador at the weekend and pledged to continue working to ensure the rights of the largest refugee population in South America.

EGYPT: Women Targeted in Tahrir Square

It is becoming increasingly uncomfortable to be female or foreign in Cairo's Tahrir Square, birthplace of the January 2011 Egyptian revolution.

A wave of sexual assaults against female protestors and foreign female journalists by mobs of men, some armed with sticks and belts, has taken place in the last few weeks in broad public view.

SYRIA: Sexual Assault in Detention

Syrian government forces have used sexual violence to torture men, women, and boys detained during the current conflict. Witnesses and victims also told Human Rights Watch that soldiers and pro-government armed militias have sexually abused women and girls as young as 12 during home raids and military sweeps of residential areas.

INDIA: India Advances, But Many Women Still Trapped In Dark Ages

The birth of a girl, so goes a popular Hindu saying, is akin to the arrival of Lakshmi - the four-armed goddess of wealth, often depicted holding lotus flowers and an overflowing pot of gold.

That should assure pride of place for women in Indian society, especially now the country is growing both in global influence and affluence.

CENTRAL AMERICA: Still a Long Way to Go in Fight Against Sexual Violence

Access to justice for women who suffer sexual violence in Central America and southern Mexico remains limited despite the high incidence of rape and other crimes, of which underage girls are the main victims, experts say.

Syria Sees No Need for Journalists to Investigate Massacre

Just hours after a correspondent for Britain's Channel 4 News filed a video report from the Syrian village of Houla, where dozens of children were killed in a massacre last week, Syria's ambassador to the United Nations made it clear that his government would not be swayed by witness accounts of the killings gathered by journalists.

New Syria Massacre Includes 40 Women and Children

Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad "massacred" about 100 people, including many women and children, at a village in central Syria on Wednesday, the opposition Syrian National Council says.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Violence Against Women Rampant in SI

A week ago somewhere in the Gilbert Camp area, another young woman's life had been taken as result of violence, violence against women.

Although, reports after reports shows that Violence against women and young girls in Solomon Islands is very high, the issue soon sort of faded away from people's thoughts and it emerges again if another woman or young girl dies in such a very inhuman way as result of violence against women.

DRC: Women Use Radio to Fight Sexual Violence

Armed with microphones, female journalists are using the media to fight the war on women's bodies in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

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