My delegation supports the recommendation by the Secretary-General that sexual violence in conflict be reflected in all the relevant country resolutions, as well as in authorizations and renewals of the mandates of peacekeeping and special political missions.

My delegation notes with concern the emerging challenges highlighted in the report of the Secretary- General. They include, among others, increasing incidents of sexual violence committed against men and boys, particularly in the context of detention, the practice of forced marriage by armed groups, and the linkages between sexual violence and illicit natural resource extraction.

My delegation is pleased at the progress made on the monitoring, analysis and reporting arrangements and on their potential to serve as an early-warning and conflict-prevention tool. A continuous review of the impact that women protection advisers make in the field would be instructive for closing the protection gaps in the context of sexual violence in conflict.

Much work needs to be done to narrow the substantive implementation deficits that still remain. The burden of responsibility rests on the stakeholder community, including the Council, to ensure measurable progress on the implementation of the relevant Security Council resolutions in the broader context of the women, peace and security agenda and the laudable objectives it aspires to achieve.

Justice for the victims of serious violations of international human rights law is an essential requirement for the sustainable peace, security and development of States emerging from armed conflict, where the rule of law must enjoy primacy and be scrupulously upheld.

We just completed the fifty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women last month, whose agreed conclusions speak of how violent the world has become. Seven out of 10 women suffer from gender violence. Sexual violence, unfortunately, has gone viral. Two out of three women in Solomon Islands suffer from gender-based violence.

The Solomon Islands Police Force has a new look, thanks to special outreach efforts to women in terms of recruitment. Today, the acting head of our Police Force is a woman, a first for Solomon Islands. It is a small step, but an important one. Even more, it is fulfilling one of the six goals of UN-Women, that is,k strengthening the leadership of women in peace and security.

The elimination of gender-based violence is a shared responsibility. We are tackling the issues, working with all stakeholders to address the issue of rape and sexual violence with a strong campaign to prevent it, protect victims and deal with perpetrators. Solomon Islands has institutionalized Government- wide structures to deal with the issue nationally, working with all the relevant stakeholders.

That also speaks of the rich experience that the women of my country have gained during the height of our ethnic conflict. They appealed for peace, as women in parts of the country suffered from sexual violence.

Solomon Islands is contributing to the debate as a country emerging from conflict. While stamping out sexual violence from any conflict is our global responsibility, the primary responsibility, as rightly pointed out by the Secretary-General, rests with States. Solomon Islands continues to tackle the issue of sexual violence in the context of its gender-based violence national framework.