Measures to Address Sexual Violence in Conflict Situations

Issues # 5 and 6 of Words to Action, DAW’s (now part of UN Women) quarterly newsletter on violence against women, was produced with feature articles on sexual violence in conflict settings, and the vital role of CEDAW in eliminating violence against women. Hide

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, continued advocacy related to Security Council resolutions 1888 and 1889. UNIFEM participated in UNCT programmes and other inter-agency initiatives in many countries, such as in the development of the UN Action-supported strategy on sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Hide

The project “Strengthening prevention of sexual violence in conflict with parties to armed conflict (phase I)” was submitted for funding to UN Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict in December 2009. The project, in which UNICEF, UNFPA, DPA and OCHA have partnered up, aims to develop a set of tools and approaches for engaging parties to conflict, and calling on them to respect international law and to stop using rape and other forms of sexual violence as a weapon of warfare. Hide

In November 2009, UNFPA participated and was a key note speaker in the international conference on monitoring implementation of Security Council resolutions 1325 and 1820, held in Oslo, Norway. Hide

In December 2009, UNFPA held a training in Mauritius for staff working in regional and country offices to improve their capacity to effectively prevent and respond to GBV in humanitarian settings and to coordinate multi-sectoral responses to GBV in humanitarian settings. In November 2009, UNFPA, in collaboration with the International Center for Reproductive Health at Ghent University in Belgium, organized a 2-week training for humanitarian professionals in Ghent, Belgium, on addressing gender-based violence in humanitarian settings. Hide

UNFPA partnered with the Center for Diseases Control (CDC), the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), UNICEF, UNAIDS, UNIFEM and WHO in a multi-country multi-stakeholder initiative on addressing sexual violence against girls. The initiative is being rolled out in 4 pilot countries. Hide

The WHO Global Health Cluster tools and guidance integrate prevention of and response to sexual violence as part of the minimum set of actions to be undertaken by the health sector in humanitarian settings. Training on these tools and guidance is ongoing at global, regional, nation and sub-national levels and technical support is provided to country level humanitarian health clusters. WHO with UNHCR and UNFPA, launched an e-learning programme on the clinical management of rape in emergencies settings. Hide

In September 2009, a workshop, jointly facilitated by UNHCR, UNFPA and the International Rescue Committee, was held on the establishment of standard operating procedures to address SGBV, and on the gender-based violence information management system (GBVIMS). The workshop included participants from the Central African Republic, Chad, Liberia, Nepal, and Sudan. UNHCR and UNFPA conducted GBVIMS technical support missions to the refugee operations in Kenya and Thailand. Hide

During 2009, UNHCR organized a session for staff at Headquarters to raise awareness about Security Council resolutions 1820 and 1888, and also held a lecture on Revisiting Strategies of Inclusion and Violence against Women. UNHCR commemorated the 16 days of activism campaign against gender violence at Headquarters and in the field with a variety of activities, including a demonstration of solidarity by UNHCR staff in joining the “Get Cross” campaign of UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict. Hide

The UNESCO Communication and Information Sector conducted numerous activities in post-conflict countries, where an emphasis was put on women’s involvement in conflict resolution, peace-building, and reconstruction through better access to information. In this context, safety training for women journalists against violence and specific threats to foster security of women journalists in conflict and post conflict situations is strongly supported. UNESCO is following up on the development of its project on school-related gender-based violence in six post conflict countries in Africa. Hide