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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THAILAND: Muslim Women In Southern Thailand Face Discrimination By Civil And Religious Law

Muslim women in Thailand's insurgency-plagued southern region face problems of discrimination under state and religious law, as well as cultural norms, that are exceedingly difficult to address, a prominent human rights activist told TrustLaw.

EUROPE: MEPs Call For Directive To Combat Violence Against Women

Rape and other sexual violence against women should be recognised as a crime throughout the EU, and its perpetrators prosecuted automatically, the European Parliament's Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee said this week in a resolution calling for an EU directive to combat gender-based violence.

NORTH KOREA: Women Are Abused In the North, Study Finds

Most North Korean women are exposed to brutal violence and sexual abuse in their home and workplace but they have no legal recourse in the reclusive country, according to Citizens' Alliance for North Korean Human Rights.

The civic group released a report on violence against women in North Korea Thursday titled “The battered wheel of the revolution,” which was organized by the Dutch and British embassies in Seoul.

AFRICA: Church Makes United Stand Against Sexual Violence

he Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams is lending his support to a new church coalition working to end sexual violence against women.

The Silent No More coalition consists of the Anglican Communion, Lambeth Palace, Tearfund, Christian Aid and Restored.

PHILIPPINES: Women's Desk Continues To Treat Cases Of Violence Against Women

The Laoag City Police women's desk continues to process cases of violence against women having recorded at least 15 cases, three of which have been filed in court, from January to present.

COTE D'IVOIRE: Crimes against Humans

The violence in Côte d'Ivoire has gotten so that women sitting at a vegetable stall mid-afternoon can end up in pools of blood on the ground in an instant.

A mortar attack that killed at least 25 people in the commercial capital Abidjan on 17 March came from military forces loyal to Laurent Gbagbo and “could constitute a crime against humanity”, says the UN Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI).

SOUTH AMERICA: Women's Day Events Focus on Violence, Poverty

South Americans celebrated International Women's Day on March 8, the holiday's 100th anniversary, with actions calling attention to the murders of women, along with other forms of violence against women and failures by the region's governments to provide security from these crimes.

GEORGIA: Domestic Violence Research Reveals Big Problem in Georgia

Gender based violence is among the most important social problems in Georgia. There have been lots of anti-violence campaigns carried out by both local and international organizations in recent years but the problem remains unchanged. On March 10, Anti-violence Network of Georgia supported by the Estonian Institute for Open Society Research stated that “every third woman is the victim of violence in Georgia".

SUDAN: 7 Rape Cases in Shagra and 1 in Garsila by Uniformed Darfur Militia

Armed men wearing uniforms and mounted on camels committed seven rapes in Shagra area, targeting displaced women who had gone out of their camps to harvest crops. Seven rape victims were from Abu Shouk Camp. Another girl was raped elsewhere in Darfur, in Garsila.

SRI LANKA: War Ends, Women Struggle On

In the regions newly liberated from conflict, the struggle still continues for women. Having had to go through hell in order to raise their families after losing husbands, livelihoods and basic services in a daily environment where unpredictability was the norm, they no doubt expected some quick relief, some panacea to their suffering once the conflict ended.

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