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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BOLIVIA: Politics, a Risky Business for Women

Taking an active part in politics in Bolivia can be a hazardous undertaking. Hundreds of reports of violence against women participating in politics attest to the risk. And while attacks go unpunished, a bill designed to protect the rights of women occupying public office has spent almost a decade in Congress waiting to be approved.

PERU: Cuzco Women Stand Up to Violence

For tourists and other visitors, Cuzco has a special fascination as the ancient capital of the Inca empire. But social scientists know it as one of the areas in the world with the highest rates of violence against women.

Ten years ago, a group of Cuzco women decided to take an organised stand against all forms of gender-based violence, focusing on encouraging other women to report their abuse and get help.

NICARAGUA: Police Harassment and Detention of Women Rights Defenders

On 30 October 2009, women human rights defenders Ms Patricia Orozco, Ms Lorna Norori and Ms Ana Eveling Orozco, were subject to police harassment and detention in the city of León. Patricia Orozco is a journalist and leader of el Movimiento Autónomo de Mujeres de Nicaragua – MAM (the Nicaraguan Women's Autonomous Movement), a social and political NGO which works for democracy and equality. She was ill-treated upon arrest.

CENTRAL AMERICA: Gender-based Violence, the Hidden Face of Insecurity

Gender-based violence and sexual abuse are serious public security problems in Central America, and Nicaragua is no exception, according to reports by United Nations agencies and women's organisations.

LATIN AMERICA: Gender-based Violence Represents Threat to Human Security

Latin America and the Caribbean is a dangerous place for women. More than 50 percent of the women on the continent have been victims of some form of violence. In commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, UN-INSTRAW is launching a media kit on violence against women and human security in the region as well as a new study about gender and security sector reform in the Dominican Republic.

GUATEMALA: Putting an End to Violence Against Women in Guatemala

This country was selected due to the growing violence against women, with the aim to give this issue more attention and thus facilitate the processes leading to its eradication.

LATIN AMERICA: Media-Latin America: Women Deserve Better Press

"The press will change when they cease to report exclusively from a masculine point of view," Peru's deputy Minister for Women, Norma Añaños, told participants at an international seminar for journalists on "Women at Work, Women as Leaders", held in the Peruvian capital.

At Least 708 Women Killed in 2009 in Guatemala

Some 708 women were killed in Guatemala in 2009, based on Interior Ministry figures released on Saturday.

According to official figures, murders of women last year were less than in 2008, when 773 women died violent deaths in this Central American country.

Most crimes against women have gone unpunished despite the existence, since April 2008, of a specific law against femicide.

More Central American Women being Killed, Cobourg Charity Says

The rising number of women being murdered in Central America is highlighted in a recently released grim report, thanks to the support of a Northumberland charity.

"It shows a strong increase in the number of women being killed," said Bill Fairbairn, Horizons of Friendship's Mesoamerican coordinator. "I was shocked. You want to know why women are being targeted."

UN in Guatemala Condemns Recent Threats against Mrs. Norma Cruz

UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM IN GUATEMALA CONDEMNS THREATS AGAINST NORMA CRUZ, DIRECTOR OF ‘SURVIVORS FOUNDATION'

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