Zainab Hawa Bangura

While wars are devastating for all civilians, women and girls are confronted with specific threats because of their gender. Due to deep-rooted gender norms, they are more likely to have their rights trampled upon than their sons, brothers and fathers. Among the most abhorrent of these abuses are rape as well as other forms of sexual violence.

As Maj. Gen. Patrick Cammaert, a former United Nations peacekeeping commander, once put it, “It is now more dangerous to be a woman than a soldier in modern conflicts.” 

As the U.N. special representative on sexual violence in conflict, I hear the harrowing stories of survivors of these crimes on a daily basis. Their stories should haunt our collective consciousness. Rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, mutilation of sexual organs and forced marriage are committed with impunity in many, if not most, of the armed conflicts that are taking place around the world.

After being violated, many survivors are victimized a second time by legal systems that trivialize their trauma. They are also often victimized by their own families and communities, who shun them rather than the perpetrators of the crimes committed against them. Moreover, the victims and witnesses who dare to come forward and testify often face threats and reprisals.

No child should ever be forced to drop out of school due to the stigma she faces as a rape victim, such as a 12-year-old girl I met in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. No survivors of systematic violations in rape camps should ever be forced to meet their perpetrators on the street, in the supermarket, or in their children’s schools, such as the survivors I met in Bosnia. No survivor should ever be incarcerated for so-called “morality crimes” after being raped, as are many women who are being held in prison in Afghanistan.

What these survivors have to go through is one of the great injustices of our time. Putting an end to these atrocities, however, has proved unsettlingly difficult because there is no one-size-fits-all solution.

Ending sexual violence in war requires not only that perpetrators are held to account, but also a long-term shift in social norms and attitudes. This must be ensured both before conflict begins and during peace-building processes so that women can have their rightful say in what society should look like in the aftermath of war.

Ensuring medical, psychosocial, legal and livelihood support for the victims of atrocities is equally important. This is particularly true for the survivors of sexual violence who face utter destitution when they are cast out of their families and communities because they happened to be raped.

Wars may end, but the legacy of these crimes lives on. Throughout history, women have been excluded from peace talks, crimes of sexual violence have been sidelined from international prosecutions, and the stigma of rape has been borne by the victims, rather than by the perpetrators.

The self-evident truth that women’s participation and safety are crucial to building sustainable peace is slowly changing “politics as usual.” We now can see some glimmers of hope, even in those countries that are facing colossal challenges.

In the peace process between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, for instance, survivors have been heard at the peace table and mechanisms for reparations have been put in place.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the president has appointed a special representative to fight sexual violence. At the same time the Congolese armed forces have adopted an action plan, which has spurred new education, training and capacity-building efforts in order to end sexual violence.

In Somalia, the president has made a personal commitment to ensure that survivors who report rape will no longer risk being imprisoned, and that a specialized crimes unit and clinic will be created to deal with these cases.

We must learn from these examples if we hope to change the future.