Tri-Service
Calls For Government To Tackle Sexual Violence In Conflict
In the age of the internet we can now see graphic horrors of war while far away from the conflict itself.
The streets reduced to rubble, the dead and dying, maimed survivors covered with blood.
But there is a hidden devastation from an invisible weapon. Rape.
The surprise pairing of William Hague and Angelina Jolie did much to open the world’s eyes to the use of sexual violence in conflict, culminating in an international conference in London two years ago.
But a committee of Lords is warning that momentum could be lost unless the British government ‘redoubles its efforts’.
After a 9-month study their report concludes:
“For far too long sexual violence has been regarded as just one of those things that occurs in conflict.”
The Lords fear it is a war crime that is being overlooked and say:
“Like genocide, slavery, torture and piracy, it must be eradicated”
Last year the United Nations identified 19 countries where sexual violence was being used in conflict, in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, South America, and Europe.
In Iraq when tens of thousands of Yazidis were effectively kidnapped by Islamic State, not only were many killed, many more were raped and abused.
Dr Ali Muthanna, a psychiatrist working in Iraq, told Forces TV, the first impression of those who have been abused is that they have totally collapsed.
“They have been treated as a slave, and also they have been sold several times so they have lost their dignity”
Baroness Nicholson who chairs the Lords Committee points out it is a war crime on a par with genocide, but says:
“We have undervalued this crime against humanity, and it’s time it was brought up and severely tackled”
The Lords report makes a string of recommendations including 'naming and shaming' of regimes that use sexual violence, and a tribunal to look at allegations of sexual exploitation by international peacekeeping troops.
The British government, they say, must properly resource its Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, set ambitious policy goals, and report annually on its progress.
More from Forces TV: Raising Awareness Of Gender In Conflict
But why Britain, indeed is Britain really the best choice to spearhead what has to be an international effort?
Baroness Nicholson says that our positions in the EU, the Commonwealth and five-eyes intelligence network mean Britain is “in a unique position at the moment, and we’re perfectly poised to lead this campaign”
They warn that sexual violence will only get worse if Britain does not build on the campaign it has started, and bring others with it.
Eradicating this scourge is at best an ambitious target, perhaps it seems unrealistic.
But the victims of these crimes against humanity, the Lords say, deserve no less.
More from Forces TV: Angelina Jolie Attends Conference to End Sexual Violence
Footage courtesy AMAR International Charitable Foundation
Related topics
Join Our Newsletter
