Statement by the Republic of Korea on Women, Peace and Security
Mr. Kim Sam-hoon, Republic of Korea, Security Council Open Debate, 28 October 2004

The report of the Secretary-General makes it clear that, while significant progress has been made in several key areas in the past two years, there still remain vast gaps between the goals of resolution 1325 (2000) and its implementation.

My delegation appreciates the advances made in the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) in the area of peacekeeping. We are pleased to note that there
are now full-time gender specialists in 10 of the 17 United Nations peacekeeping operations, supported and guided by the Gender Adviser at Headquarters in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

We also commend the efforts that have been made by United Nations entities, Member States and civil society in training military, civilian police and civilian peacekeeping personnel on the protection of the rights and needs of women. But we underscore the Secretary-General’s call for a more coherent strategy
for strengthening understanding among all actors of the relevance of gender issues to peacekeeping. We also strongly support the development and implementation of recruitment strategies to increase women’s participation in military, civilian police and peacekeeping operations.

My delegation fully subscribes to the view that post-conflict processes can offer societies emerging from conflict a new chance to recast social relations for the better. We therefore welcome the Secretary- General’s finding that women’s participation in postconflict reconstruction has increased in recent years.
We are particularly pleased to note the significant progress has been made in Afghanistan, where women were very much involved in the formulation of a new
national constitution. Furthermore, we are heartened by the fact that 20 per cent of the seats in that country’s new constitutional body are held by women. That
dynamic is also in evidence in Rwanda, where constitutional set-asides and new elections have brought 49 per cent of the seats to women in the lower Parliament, which represents the highest proportion of women in parliaments worldwide.

However, we remain concerned that the majority of reconstruction efforts do not systematically include gender perspectives. Accordingly, we support the Secretary-General’s call for systematic incorporation of gender perspectives in the planning, implementation and monitoring of all reconstruction programmes and budgets.

One of the terrible truths of modern warfare is that women and girls suffer at a level wholly disproportionate to their involvement in a given conflict. In particular, gender-based violence — including rape, sexual slavery and other forms of abuse — has been a shameful aspect of warfare in many conflicts around the world. The consequences have been tragic for millions of women and girls, as well as for the families, communities and societies they sustain.

We are troubled that the international community has not yet been able to prevent acts of violence against women during armed conflict. As the Secretary-General’s report notes, sexual and genderbased violence have recently been reported in the Darfur region of the Sudan and in other countries in conflict or post-conflict situations. Clearly, we have a long way to go in eliminating that scourge upon humanity.

Nevertheless, we have hope in the positive developments in our uphill battle against gender-based violence. The special rapporteurs of the Commission on Human Rights, in particular the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, have played an important role in drawing attention to the vulnerability of women
in recent conflicts. The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda have broken new ground in the area of jurisprudence on sexual violence under international law. Most significantly, the establishment of the International Criminal Court, with jurisdiction
over crimes against humanity — including rape, sexual slavery and other forms of sexual violence — promises to eliminate impunity for gender-based crimes against women in armed conflict.

That hope, however, will not automatically become reality. Member States must send strong signals to parties to armed conflicts that violations of women’s human rights and gender-based violence will be met with severe punishment and sanctions. We must vigorously pursue and prosecute those who commit such criminal acts, and we must enhance the effectiveness of tribunals and justice mechanisms. The best way to prevent gender-based violence during wartime is to send a clear signal to would-be perpetrators that their crimes will not go unpunished. Furthermore, for countries emerging from conflict, the elaboration of a domestic legal system that provides effective ways to bring the perpetrators of gender-based crimes to justice would be important in the postconflict
peace-building process.

It has been four years since resolution 1325 (2000) was adopted. However, lack of protection for women and girls and violations of their human rights during armed conflict still persist. The Republic of Korea reaffirms its commitment to working bilaterally, multilaterally and through United Nations agencies to do our share for the full and effective implementation of resolution 1325 (2000).