Press Conference on Sexual Violence in Conflict

 

The recent appointment of a Special Representative for Sexual Violence in Conflict was a clear indication of the international community’s commitment to ending a crime that devastates millions of women and children, Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro said today.

“Ending sexual violence in conflict situations remains a top priority for the Secretary-General,” Ms. Migiro said at a Headquarters press conference where she introduced European Commission Vice-President Margot Wallström, whose appointment to the new post was formally announced on 2 February.  She was expected to take up her new duties shortly in fulfilment of a request contained in Security Council resolution 1888 (2009).

Also welcoming Ms. Wallström’s appointment was Alain Le Roy, Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, who said he looked forward to working with her in developing a comprehensive strategy against sexual violence.  It would include strong advocacy to help women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and many other situations.

Ms. Wallström acknowledged she had a tough task ahead of her, given that her term in office was a mere two years and that sexual violence was not only a problem in Africa but in any conflict area.  However, she expressed her appreciation of the high expectations that accompanied the position, adding:  “It’s mission irresistible for me at this moment.”

Noting that part of her task was to get the United Nations system to coordinate better on the problem, she pledged to work closely with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Department of Field Support and all other stakeholders towards ending impunity, creating awareness and developing Member-State ownership of the efforts required.

Asked how she would try to accomplish those difficult tasks, Ms. Wallström said she would work with teams on the ground and with officials on the political level to ensure that everything she did was anchored in the Security Council, while also trying to ensure that the entire United Nations system acted in a more forceful, coherent way.  Since giving Member States political ownership of the issue was a major objective, she planned to put together a team of legal experts to help them strengthen their domestic judicial systems so as to give them the capacity to prosecute sexual crimes and fight impunity.

She said she would also have to work closely with personnel on the ground to develop effective protection methods and ways to monitor progress.  In her advocacy role, her aim would be to ensure that preventing sexual violence was high on the international agenda while sending out a clear, strong message from the entire international system that such violence was never acceptable.  With such a broad mandate and only two years to accomplish it, it was clear she would have to prioritize, geographically and otherwise, while also deciding on realistic, concrete goals, Ms. Wallström said, emphasizing that there was a clear need for success stories that would serve as models for the worldwide effort.

Asked why rape was still endemic in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mr. Le Roy said the effort to improve civilian protection was ongoing, and the Government had recently approved a strategy for that purpose.  Peacekeepers of the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) had increased their presence in critical situations, escorting women on their errands to collect firewood and water, for example.

He said joint protection teams of police and human rights officers were active on the ground, investigating threats, meeting with local officials and developing liaisons with mayors through cell phone communication.  In addition, training for soldiers never previously trained to protect civilians had to be developed and repeated with each troop rotation.  However, there was still a “dramatic” number of women being raped in the country and efforts to stop it must continue, though MONUC could never stop those crimes on its own.  Even with 20,000 troops, there were only 20 soldiers per 10,000 residents, he said, adding that, for that reason, he was counting on the new Special Representative to help convince the authorities to increase their efforts and help empower women.

With regard to action against United Nations peacekeepers accused of sexual abuse in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti and elsewhere, Mr. Le Roy said the complete procedures could be seen on the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and Department of Field Support websites, pointing out that such accusations were followed by immediate investigations on the part of the Office of Internal Oversight Services.  If the allegations were credible, the accused person was repatriated immediately and it was then up to the troop-contributing country concerned to prosecute, he explained.

It was true that greater efforts were required to make sure the accused actually faced justice, but there had indeed been successful prosecutions, he stressed, citing a case in which the accused had been sentenced to eight years in prison.  However, dialogue with troop-contributing countries was continuing because it was important to convince them that it was in their own interest to be transparent in such cases.

Questioned as to why MONUC was still supporting a Congolese army unit accused of gang rape by Philip Allston, United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Mr. Le Roy said he did not think the Mission was supporting the specific unit cited.  MONUC only supported units of 16,000 soldiers out of a 100,000-strong army.  Any time there was full evidence that a unit had violated human rights, it ended its support, as had occurred with the 213 Brigade.  “Unit by unit, we are vetting their conduct,” the Under-Secretary-General said.

Asked what message she wished to send out right away about sexual violence, Ms. Wallström quoted the dictum of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright of the United States:  “Violence against women is not cultural, it’s criminal.”  Preventing such violence was not a women’s issue, but a human rights issue, she emphasized.

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For information media • not an official record