Justice, Rule of Law and Security Sector Reform

In response to the Secretary-General's UNiTE to End Violence against Women and Girls campaign, initiated in 2010, Rwanda hosted an international conference on the role of security organs in ending violence against women and girls. The conference endorsed a declaration and subsequently formed a secretariat to monitor its implementation.

In conflict settings and, more specifically, those driven by genocide ideology, as my country experienced in 1994, rape and sexual assault are used to punish, humiliate and dehumanize victims, their families and communities. Far from being random acts of brutality, the systematic sexual victimization of women and girls in conflict settings is now well understood as a crime against humanity that demands the urgent attention of the world.

In addition, Rwanda is the leading contributor from Africa of female police and correctional officers to United Nations peace support and peacekeeping missions. Among other duties, those officers actively contribute to combating and raising awareness about violence against women. They also serve as advisers on gender-based violence and share best practices with officers and local authorities.

Impunity breeds and rewards criminality and violence. Only by insisting on justice and by fighting impunity has Rwanda been able to achieve meaningful reconciliation within our borders. The eradication of sexual violence in conflict will not be possible as long as perpetrators are able to escape accountability for their actions.

Rwanda recommends that the problem of sexual violence be addressed directly as part of any post- conflict or peacebuilding process. That should include United Nations-sponsored peace negotiations and security sector reform processes or be part of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration.

First, we would like to underline the significance of the fight against impunity. We can never expect to eradicate sexual violence without ensuring that those responsible are systematically brought to justice.

My delegation also believes that the adoption of targeted measures by the relevant Sanctions Committees against perpetrators of sexual violence crimes is another crucial means at the Council's disposal. It serves as a strong deterrent to conflict-related sexual violence by raising the stakes for perpetrators.

In that regard, we support the Secretary-General's recommendation to ensure that reparations awarded through judicial or administrative mechanisms be established and made available to victims of sexual violence in conflict. It is particularly important that post-conflict reconstruction processes strengthen overall systems for reparation, including the provision of adequate and timely resources.

Let me conclude my statement with a word for the survivors of sexual violence. They are at the centre of our debates. Let us not forget them and the fact that, beyond bringing perpetrators to justice, the international community also needs to afford care and reparation to women and girls and men and boys that have been victims of sexual violence in conflict-related situations.

All of the information contained in the report is relevant for the Security Council in terms of its Charter-mandated responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The information that has already been collected by the reporting mechanism will make it possible for the Council to have access to “timely, objective, accurate and reliable information” on sexual violence in conflict.