Another question that we ask ourselves pertains to the reasons for the persistence of these serious violations of human rights and the exponential increase in the number of victims. There are sociological reasons, first of all, which are linked to the refusal of women and girls to report the facts to the authorities because of their fear of reprisals, stigmatization or being punished or rejected by their spouses or their communities.

We had sincerely hoped that the Special Representative of the Secretary-General would have publicly presented the violations of the rights of Syrian women and girls in refugee camps in neighbouring countries. For example, there were more than 250 documented cases in which Syrian women in a Turkish refugee camp had been impregnated by Turkish supervisors and their terrorist associates.

The report of the Secretary-General includes seven paragraphs concerning my country. The allegations contained in the report were based on reports by the independent international commission of inquiry in 2012 and 2013. My country would like to stress that the work of that commission since its inception was not professional; rather, it was primarily politically motivated.

The Government of Syria has outlined those serious lapses to the Special Representative of the Secretary- General, as well as to the commission of inquiry in an official and documented manner. But the commission has ignored all that, for unknown reasons.

My country has examined the Secretary-General's report on sexual violence in armed conflict (S/2013/149) and the information it contains, submitted by the Special Representative. We support all efforts aimed at putting an end to all forms of the crime of sexual violence in conflict, ending impunity and punishing perpetrators and those who incite such violence.

In that regard, I would like to raise some questions. Why did the Special Representative choose to ignore the statement she issued on 15 February under the headline “Syria, release kidnapped women and children and protect them from sexual violence”.

In conclusion, my homeland, Syria, would like to seriously deal with those horrendous and egregious violations of human rights. Syria would like to cooperate with the United Nations, especially with Ms. Zainab Bangura, in order to expose the true events unfolding in Syria in a manner free of sensationalism and politicization and divorced from the agenda of influential Powers in this international Organization.

In conclusion, my homeland, Syria, would like to seriously deal with those horrendous and egregious violations of human rights. Syria would like to cooperate with the United Nations, especially with Ms. Zainab Bangura, in order to expose the true events unfolding in Syria in a manner free of sensationalism and politicization and divorced from the agenda of influential Powers in this international Organization.

Thirdly, and finally, Switzerland heeds the Secretary-General's call for the recruitment of women's protection advisers as members of United Nations assessment teams. We draw attention to the Justice Rapid Response initiative. It is an intergovernmental support mechanism that can provide the international community and the Security Council with rapidly deployable expertise.

We welcome the Special Representative's commitment to continuing the work started by her predecessor. We think that recognizing sexual violence as a tactic and a consequence of war remains vital to undertaking the real preventive action that is so urgently needed.