China condemns all violence against women in armed conflict, including sexual violence. China supports the full implementation of the relevant resolutions of the Council and urges parties in conflict to abide by international humanitarian law and other relevant international law to effectively protect the safety of women and other disadvantaged groups. I would like to emphasize three points.

We believe it is equally important to continue to promote the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) in our region through the exchange of experiences and international cooperation, both at the bilateral level and in the regional mechanisms for peacekeeping operations of which Chile is a part.

We agree with the Secretary-General when he states in his report that national tribunals continue to bear the primary responsibilty for the fight against impunity for cases of sexual violence and are an important complement to the efforts of the International Criminal Court, fundamentally in terms of restoring victims' dignity and holding perpetrators legally accountable.

The policy of Chile in this area has been strengthened through our participation in a number of international instruments that have allowed us to consolidate our democratic principles and make progress in this direction. In August 2009, Chile published its national action plan pursuant to resolution 1325 (2000), which it structured around the gender perspective, human rights, participation and coordination.

One of the founding principles of Chile's foreign policy is the promotion of fundamental and universal human rights. In that respect, we will continue to support the efforts aimed at preventing violence against women in conflict and promoting mediation in conflict situations. We will continue to advocate for women's inclusion and participation in efforts at peacekeeping, peacebuilding and mediation.

A key element in making progress on these issues has been the guidelines established in the Security Council resolutions that followed historic resolution 1325 (2000), which reinforce its principles and the undeniable progress that has been made on the issue of gender-based violence within the United Nations system. In that respect, it is worth highlighting the conclusions of the Commission on the Status of Women at its fifty-seventh session.

We welcome the recent agreement between the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United Nations to strengthen efforts to tackle conflict-related sexual violence. We urge its implementation and look forward to seeing improvements on the ground very soon.

We welcome the Government of Afghanistan's efforts to implement a law on the elimination of violence against women. However, more must be done to increase understanding and awareness of the law and its application and to end practices that imprison victims of sexual violence while allowing perpetrators to go free.

In conclusion, allow me to reiterate that Canada is committed to working with the international community on preventing and responding to conflict- related sexual violence in all of its forms, including rape as a weapon of war and early and forced marriage, in order to advance human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, including women and girls. We call on the Security Council to strengthen its response in that regard as well.

Following the harrowing accounts of sexual violence in Mali reported by the Secretary-General, Canada urges the Council to ensure that the Mali mission mandate specifically addresses sexual violence. The Council should ensure that preventing and addressing conflict-related sexual violence is included in all mission mandates. Perpetrators of sexual violence must be held to account.