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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SOLOMON ISLANDS: Violence Against Women Shocking

The levels of violence against women are shocking and show that two out of three women have experienced violence from their partners during their life time.

The statement was made by Honiara City Council Mayor Andrew Mua who was the guest of honor at the Media for Campaign on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Children last Friday with the theme ‘NAF NAO'.

ASIA/PACIFIC: Asia Pacific Women Share Stories Against Militarism

Women representatives from Asia Pacific countries shared their experiences on the impact of militarism in their homes at a conference on “Women Resisting Violence And War” held at the Igorot Lodge, Camp John Hay from July 19 to 21.

DRC: Congolese Infants Raped in Black Magic Rituals

Six children under the age of two have reportedly been raped or sexually molested in the Lubumbashi area, as part of apparent rituals in which the perpetrators believe they will acquire good fortune as result of the abuse.The new cases come in the wake of a number of similar well documented incidents of sexual violence against infants over the last year, which have alarmed activists and sparked calls for the introduction of the death penalty f

INTERNATIONAL: Ending Sexual Violence Against Women

A new initiative has been launched by UNIFEM, aiming to bring the world's attention to the need to end sexual violence against women in general and in conflict zones in particular. Global Voices is a scheme whereby media outlets and individuals spread the word and raise public awareness, fighting for women's rights, gender equality and the empowerment of women.

DRC: The Sexual Violence that Fuels a Twisted War

It's a funny feeling when you step off an airplane at Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It's like having landed on a military base. Scores of UN aircraft line the tarmac, all part of a massive nearly 20,000-strong peacekeeping operation now known as MONSUCO.

AFRICA: How to Counter Rape as a Weapon of War

The incentive to use rape as a weapon of war in Africa would be less if more was done to ensure men were involved in discussions about gender equality, claims the director of a human rights project in Uganda.

UNITED STATES: Take Action on IVAWA Now to End Violence Against Women

It was thrilling this week to see President Barack Obama signing a new law to combat "conflict minerals" mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo -- a heinous practice financed by armed rebel militias, whose extreme violence against women has made Congo one of the most deadly places on earth for females.

HAITI: Haiti Six Months Later: Still Suffering

“Recovery in Haiti is one of the most complex humanitarian and development challenges in modern times.”
—Oxfam

HAITI: Haitian Women's Organizations Make Their Voices Heard at UN Meeting

On our first day in Haiti, grassroots women's organizations -- including our sister organization KOFAVIV -- stood up in a UN meeting on gender-based violence and demanded that their voices be heard. For months, women in the camps for displaced people have faced persistent sexual violence, and they have found few if any effective solutions coming from the UN.

INTERNATIONAL: Is Guatemala a Toxic Place for Women to Live?

About 15 years ago, when I was running the United Nations Association in San Francisco, I was asked by women immigration lawyers to address their legal society to convince the male lawyers that women could qualify as a category suffering state persecution. This would make them eligible for U.S. immigration and such eligibility would lead to a flood. The female lawyers were already on board, but their male colleagues were not.

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