Transcript Slide 1

Human Rights Seminar, City University of NY, February 2009
When is sexual violence a threat to international peace and security?
Letitia Anderson, UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict
“In no other area is our
collective failure to
ensure effective
protection for civilians
more apparent…than in
terms of the masses of
women and girls whose
lives are destroyed each
year by sexual violence
perpetrated in conflict.”
-United Nations
Secretary-General,
Ban Ki-Moon, 2007.
What is UN Action?
3 Pillars of Action:
UN Action is a “critical joint UN systemwide initiative to guide advocacy,
knowledge-building, resource
mobilization, and joint programming
around sexual violence in conflict”.
- Secretary-General’s Policy Committee,
June 2007.
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Country Level Action: Support joint
programming by UN Country Teams and
Peace Support Operations. Build
operational and technical capacity.
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Advocating for Action: Raise public
awareness and generate political will to
end sexual violence as part of a broader
campaign to “Stop Rape Now”.
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Learning by Doing: Create a knowledge
hub on sexual violence in conflict.
“It is now more dangerous to be a
woman than to be a soldier in modern
conflict.”
6 Guiding Principles:
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Rape is not an inevitable consequence of conflict. It
must be prevented.
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Gender-based violence, including sexual violence,
is a violation of human rights.
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Attempts to end sexual violence must address
gender-based inequalities by empowering women,
and protecting and promoting their human rights.
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Constructive involvement of men and boys is vital.
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Women must guide advocacy and programming
efforts to end sexual violence and secure peace.
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Sexual violence in conflict is one of history’s great
silences. We all have a duty to act.
- Maj. Gen. Patrick Cammaert, 2008,
ex-Force Commander for Eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo.
Sexual Violence on the Security Agenda:
Sexual violence is often used or commissioned as a tactic of war that specifically
targets women and girls, exacerbating conflict and impeding the restoration of
international peace and security.
Historical Backdrop:
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50,000 – 64,000 internally displaced women in Sierra
Leone sexually attacked by combatants.
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20,000 – 50,000 women raped during war in Bosnia and
Herzegovina, early 1990s.
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250,000 – 500,000 women raped during 1994 Rwandan
genocide.
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An average of 40 women raped every day in South Kivu,
DRC. In North Kivu, some 350 rape cases are reported
every month.
4 Key Elements of SCR 1820:
1.
Explicitly links sexual violence as a tactic of war with the maintenance of
international peace and security.
2.
Aligns policy framework with international law – recognising sexual violence
as a war crime, crime against humanity and constituent act of genocide –
countering the culture of impunity.
3.
Affirms the importance of women’s participation in all processes related to
ending sexual violence in conflict, including peace talks.
4.
Requests a comprehensive report from the S-G on implementation and
strategies for improving information flow to the Council, so better data can
inform better responses.
SCR 1325 – Recap of Key Elements:
“3 Ps” Framework for Action:
Participation & representation of women in all aspects
• In peace negotiations, recovery processes, postconflict governance and peacekeeping operations
• In processes and mechanisms related to ending
sexual violence in conflict
Protection of women as a group with specific needs
• Protection of women’s human rights and of women as
civilians
• Requirement of concrete measures to end sexual
violence
Prevention of sexual and other violence/conflict-prevention
• Sexual violence as a security issue - linked to
maintenance of peace
• Prevention of conflict linked to prevention of violence
“Rape is too often seen as ‘collateral
damage’ of conflicts…We are missing the
point: rape is a crime and must be
stopped”.
- Assistant Secretary-General,
Kathleen Cravero, 2008.
What does SCR 1820 add to SCR 1325?
SCR 1325
SCR 1820
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First SCR to link women to the peace and security
agenda: addressing the impact of war on women and
their contribution to conflict resolution and sustainable
peace
Avoid amnesty “where feasible” [OP 11]
Training on protection rights and needs of women [OP
6]
Need to maintain civilian character of refugee/IDP
camps and design them in a way that helps prevent
sexual violence [OP 12]
No reference to sanctions for perpetrators; mentions
impact of sanctions on women [OP 14]
No strategy for improving information-flow to the
Council
“Special measures” to protect women and girls from
SGBV [OP 10]
No mention of coordination
No reference to root causes of war-time rape
No reference to Peacebuilding Commission (est. 2005)
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First SCR to recognise sexual violence as a self-standing
security issue, linked with reconciliation and durable
peace
Exclusion of sexual violence crimes from amnesty
provisions [OP 4]
Specific training of troops on categorical prohibition of
sexual violence [OP 3; 6; 7]
Develop mechanism for protecting women/girls in/around
UN-managed camps [OP 10]
Sexual violence relevant to country-specific sanctions
regimes [OP 5]
Global report due 30 June 2009 [OP 15]
Itemises measures that can concretely improve protection
and assistance [OP 13]
Welcomes coordination efforts of UN Action Against
Sexual Violence in Conflict [pp xiv]
Scope for addressing root causes: “debunking myths that
fuel sexual violence” [OP 3]
Peacebuilding Commission to advise on ways to address
sexual violence [OP11]
Normative Background to SCR 1820:
Reaffirms commitment to continuing and full implementation of:
 SCR 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security;
 SCR 1612 (2005) on Children and Armed Conflict;
 SCR 1674 (2006) on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict;
 2005 World Summit Outcome Document (resolves, inter alia, to eliminate all forms of violence
against women and girls);
 International humanitarian law (e.g. 1949 Geneva Conventions; 1977 Additional Protocols);
 International human rights law (e.g. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women; the Convention on the Rights of the Child);
 1994 International Conference on Population and Development;
 1995 Beijing Platform for Action (Section E, “Women and Armed Conflict”).
SCR 1820 covers countries on the Council’s agenda; other countries:
 GA Res 62/134 (2007) on Eliminating rape and other forms of sexual violence in all their
manifestations, including in conflict and related situations.
Sexual violence as a security issue:
 Human security
 Economic security
 Communal security
 National security
 International security
“Far from being a specific niche issue,
sexual violence is an indicator of the most
severe breach of human security … it is
closely related to food aid, firewood
collection and HIV/AIDS. It directly affects
women and girls but also men and boys –
and destroys the fabric of families and
communities. Punishing its perpetrators
would contribute to restoring trust in the
judicial system. Preventing it would spare
disproportionate human and financial costs
to reconstructing nations. Reducing sexual
violence in all war-affected countries will be
a true sign of national recovery.”
– Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director of
UNFPA, Forced Migration, Issue 27, January 2007.
When is sexual violence a security issue?
6 Pillars:
Legal test/definition:
1. Crime of concern to the
international community as a whole
A war crime, crime against humanity, a form of torture, or a
constitutive act with respect to genocide/ ethnic cleansing.
2. Command responsibility – security
profile of perpetrators
Superior in military/militia chain of command knew/should
have known sexual violence was being committed by
subordinates and failed to prevent/punish such acts.
3. Civilians targeted – protected
profile of victims
Victims are protected persons under international
humanitarian law (IHL), having non-combatant immunity.
4. Climate of impunity
Undercuts State authority; lawlessness threatens neighbouring
States.
5. Cross-border implications/ impact
on regional stability
Spread of HIV (SCR 1308); displacement/forced population
movement; exacerbates/prolongs/spreads conflict;
lawlessness/impunity poses threat to neighbouring countries.
6. Ceasefire violation
Violates terms of a ceasefire agreement.
Crimes of concern to the international community as a whole:
Pillar 1:
Legal test/definition:
1.1 War crime
A violation of the laws/customs of war occurring in
international/non-international armed conflict.
1.2 Crime against humanity
A widespread or systematic attack against the civilian
population.
1.3 Torture [amounting to a war crime
or crime against humanity]
Intentional infliction of severe pain or suffering,
physical or mental, upon a person in the custody or
under the control of the accused.
1.4 Constitutive act with respect to
genocide/ ethnic cleansing
Acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in
part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as
such/ ethnic persecution.
Pillar 2: Command responsibility
Under ICTR and ICTY case law, command responsibility requires 3 elements:
(1) existence of a superior-subordinate relationship of effective control;
(2) existence of the requisite mens rea, namely that the commander knew or
had reason to know of their subordinate’s crimes;
(3) commander failed to take the necessary steps to prevent or punish the
offences.
Pillar 3:
Civilians attacked
COMBATANT:
CIVILIAN:
Member of armed forces
Direct part in hostilities
May not be punished for taking part in
fighting, only for war crimes
POW status if captured
Protected if hors de combat (out of action)
All persons other than combatants
Protected against attack
No right to participate in hostilities
May be punished for taking part in hostilities
May only be attacked if & when they take up
arms
Pillar 4:
Climate of impunity
Preamble, 1998 Rome Statute of the ICC:
“the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a
whole must not go unpunished and their effective prosecution must be
ensured by taking measures at the national level and by enhancing
international cooperation … such grave crimes threaten the peace, security
and well-being of the world.”
Pillar 5:
Cross-border implications
 Forced displacement/ demographic destabilisation
 Vector of HIV transmission
 Transnational economic disruption
Pillar 6:
Ceasefire violation
SEXUAL
VIOLENCE
DRC
DARFUR
HAITI
RWANDA
LIBERIA
CRIME
INTERNATIONAL
√
COMMAND
RESPONSIBILITY
√
CIVILIANS
TARGETED
√
CLIMATE OF
IMPUNITY
CROSSBORDER
IMPLICATIONS
√
√
CEASEFIRE
VIOLATION
√
SCR
1856
Who is responsible for implementation?
 Member States
 Troop/police contributors
 Parties to armed conflict
 Peacekeepers
 Justice institutions
 Security Council
 Secretary-General and the UN system
Practical Challenges in the Field:
 Engaging non-State actors/rebel groups
 Establishing command responsibility for rape
 Absence of accountability/monitoring mechanism
 Building public trust in post-conflict institutions – perpetrators of
rape become charged with public protection
 Normalisation of rape as chronic social problem, including by
demobilised combatants
 Threat of SGBV as a barrier to women’s participation in public life
 Gender balance among peacekeeping personnel
 Sexual violence statistics notoriously unreliable
 Humanitarian access/proximity to victims: the world’s least visible
people, in the world’s least accessible places
 Peacekeepers increasingly mandated to protect civilians – this
must be matched with resolve and resources
 Logistical, infrastructure challenges, varied terrain, splintered
armed factions
 While the UN is now legally empowered to provide information, it
still needs to be appropriately structured and resourced to do so.
No security without women’s security!
Making a real difference to
the lives of women and girls
during and after conflict –
ensuring protection,
services, reparation, justice!
www.stoprapenow.org