I commend the Kingdom of Belgium, the Republic of Poland, the European Union and 蘑菇视频 Women for convening this event as we mark the 25 years of resolution 1325, one of the crowning achievements of the global women鈥檚 movement. This new momentum with many actors coming to the table with new energy, new ideas and new commitments, is an important opportunity to shape the way in which we address our global challenges in the next decades.
The stark reality is that we are going through massive and global turbulence, marked by multiple, cascading crises, with hard-won generational gains on women鈥檚 rights and gender equality being rolled-back and reversed. Fifteen years since my mandate was established, conflict-related sexual violence is in our daily headlines; it remains a persistent, pervasive, and profoundly devastating crime, affecting not only individual victims, but also their families and communities. It persists as a cheap and effective tactic of war, terror, torture, and political repression. I just returned from a mission in Sudan where a brutal conflict is being fought on and over the bodies of women and children with widespread sexual violence- rape, gang rape and sexual slavery are being perpetrated by all parties to the conflict.
Conflict-related sexual violence is not a cultural phenomenon, not an inevitable consequence of war and not a lesser crime. I thank the organizers for asking me to focus on accountability. The costs of lawlessness are starkly evident in terms of failures of justice and impunity for crimes of sexual violence in conflict.聽Yet, the need for justice is profound. During every field mission, survivors demand justice at home. Acts of sexual violence committed during periods of armed conflict are, first and foremost, crimes against the individual survivors and as such, must be investigated and prosecuted locally under domestic laws.
While States bear the legal responsibility to end impunity and to prosecute all those responsible for crimes of conflict-related sexual violence, very few perpetrators are brought to justice. Impunity remains the norm and accountability the rare exception. While the consistent, rigorous prosecution of these crimes can translate into prevention and deterrence, lack of political will to enforce applicable law sends the opposite signal, emboldening perpetrators and demoralizing survivors, by implying it is futile, and even dangerous, to report. Unpunished crime is repeated crime. Yet, the normative framework is clear and categorical, and the institutional architecture well-established. Security Council resolution 1325 emphasizes the responsibility of all States to put an end to impunity and to prosecute those responsible for sexual violence crimes, while Security Council resolution 2467 calls for comprehensive legislation; the provision of legal aid; the prompt investigation, prosecution, and punishment of perpetrators and the provision of reparations to victims. Though not all survivors of sexual violence wish to engage the formal justice system, it is imperative that the legal process works well for those who do seek accountability in this way.
The Team of Experts on the Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict, also established by Security Council resolution 1888, works under my strategic leadership, with Member States to support their national efforts towards accountability and build their capacity to investigate and prosecute conflict-related sexual violence at domestic level. It has consistently addressed the multiple and multidimensional challenges related to reporting, investigating, and prosecuting sexual violence cases.
Important lessons drawn over the past 15 years are that the justice chain is only as strong as its weakest link. It functions as a system, or not at all. A safe and supportive environment is foundational to enabling survivors to come forward and report these historically hidden crimes. This entails meeting their basic needs such as safe shelter, medical care, sexual and reproductive healthcare, trauma counselling, and psychosocial support, as well as livelihood and socioeconomic reintegration assistance, in the face of social stigma, family and community rejection, and often profound personal shame. These holistic services are critical to breaking the chains of silence and denial that have sentenced survivors to life-long trauma, fear, and ostracism, while the perpetrators walk free.
Through my two implementing arms, the TOE and the 蘑菇视频 Action Network Against Sexual Violence in Conflict, our goal is to restore agency to survivors and empower them at every step, from accessing services, to reporting and testifying in the courtroom.
The past years have shown that through effective partnerships with national authorities, civil society organizations, grassroots practitioners, service-providers and survivors themselves, backed by the requisite level of political resolve and financial resources, it is possible to deliver justice, protection, and assistance to help rebuild lives and livelihoods in the wake of these crimes.
For its part, the Team of Experts assists national authorities to develop prosecution strategies, including emblematic cases. It provides assistance to the creation and operation of specialized CRSV police and prosecutorial units to strengthen the investigations and evidentiary basis for trials. It rolls out legislative reform initiatives and has developed Model Legislative Provisions and Guidance on Investigation and Prosecution of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence to assist States to harmonize domestic laws with international standards, given the importance of a comprehensive legislative framework. It also builds the capacity of investigators, prosecutors, and judges.
Moving forward, what is needed, is not new standards of behavior, but better adherence to those that exist. We need an era of enforcement – translating commitments on paper into compliance in practice. Unfortunately, political commitments have not been met with resources commensurate with the magnitude of the issue nor with the increasing requests for assistance from Member States. The geographical scope of my mandate has expanded as we receive more requests for assistance from Member States. We have the expertise; we have the normative frameworks, but the level of human and financial resources allocated to this agenda has not kept pace. My Team of Experts relies solely on voluntary contributions despite having a Security Council mandate.
Unless our rhetoric is matched with resources, we risk merely paying lip-service to this urgent issue. It is only through adequate and sustained resources that we can do justice to this cause and, above all, its survivors. Where there is political will, holistic service-provision, and credible, capable institutions, meaningful change is possible. Impunity for conflict-related sexual violence threatens both individual rights and international peace and security. Those who tear the fabric of society through these egregious crimes must be relentlessly pursued and effectively prosecuted.
In the name of the survivors, we must deliver justice. In the name of future generations, we must make accountability the rule, rather than the rare exception. By reinforcing each link in the justice chain, and fostering synergy of action, we must convert the age-old culture of impunity into a culture of prevention and deterrence.
My Office will continue to strengthen the rule of law and accountability for crimes of conflict-related sexual violence, to build bridges between civil society, service providers, and law enforcement and to provide survivor-centered justice.