Protection

Furthermore, sexual violence perpetuates conflict and weakens security and stability, hampering the ability of people to participate in the political, social and economic life of their societies. The United Nations, as an organization, and we, as the international community, have a great debt to pay on this issue, having failed to address the causes of violence and sexual abuse through preventive measures, on the one hand, and to eliminate impunity in these cases, on the other. As States, we have the primary responsibility of protecting our populations. As States, we must establish robust legal and institutional frameworks that lay firm foundations for preventing and addressing existing gaps in the protection of victims, especially women and girls. It is also extremely important to expand the scope of measures to protect the most vulnerable populations, such as ethnic and religious minorities, women in rural areas, women and girls associated with armed groups, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex population, and boys and men, who are also vulnerable to sexual violence — and whose prevalence is increasing.