Declaration on UN Day for Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict

That this House notes the UN’s strong opposition to conflict-related sexual violence set out in resolutions 1325, 1820, 1888, 1960, 2106, 2331 and 2467 and its designation of 19 June 2023 as the Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict; welcomes the UK’s leadership role in the global campaign against such violence, including the November 2022 London ministerial conference at which 52 countries signed a protocol supporting accelerated action to prevent and prosecute such crimes and support survivors and victims; deplores that in conflicts in Ethiopia, Ukraine and elsewhere during the past year many thousands of women have suffered brutal conflict-related sexual violence and are still, like the hundreds of thousands more in the Rohingya, Uyghur, Yazidi and other communities, waiting for services and justice; and calls on the Government to press through the UN and its agencies for its excellent resolutions to be turned into reality, for international support and resources for tribunals and commissions investigating conflict-related sexual violence as war crimes, crimes against humanity or constitutive acts of genocide, for prompt prosecution of perpetrators, including those in the chain of command, for justice and support services for survivors, for the inclusion of women in peace negotiations and processes and for the burden of the campaign against sexual violence in conflict to be borne not by survivors and victims, but by perpetrators and those in positions of power.