[women-rights] Launch of Joint UN-Civil Society Partnership against Sexual Violence in Conflict and Crisis Settings

For immediate release
Date: 19 June 2006

United Nations, New York — United Nations organizations and civil society
groups today announced a Joint Partnership to tackle sexual violence in
conflict and crisis situations around the world. This Joint Partnership
builds on existing initiatives and will address not only the threat that
sexual violence poses to life and livelihood of survivors, but also the
longer-term impact on community and national development.

Focusing on country-level efforts to combat sexual violence, the
partnership will reach out to military and security communities to engage
them, work to strengthen prevention through rule-of-law and access to
justice, and expand services for survivors in the areas of health,
psycho-social support and rebuilding dignity and livelihoods. The
partnership will also develop a comprehensive evidence base for action
through violence monitoring and tracking systems and dissemination of data
analyses.

The need for stronger collaborative efforts to deal with gender-based
violence is extremely urgent, UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer
said, speaking at the launch of the partnership at the Swedish permanent
mission in Geneva. Ceasefires are violated, and countries can slip back
into violence — requiring constant monitoring. The massive and growing
rates of sexual violence in conflict and crisis situations are a clear
emergency, she said, and yet not enough is being done — to prevent
violence, assist survivors, or even find out exactly how many women and
children are affected.

The Joint Partnership will build on and strengthen existing collaboration
within the United Nations on the issue, including guidelines developed by
the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), the primary mechanism for
inter-agency coordination of humanitarian assistance, that brings UN and
non-UN humanitarian partners together, as well as the lessons and
experience derived from the UN Trust Fund to Eliminate Violence against
Women, which UNIFEM manages.

It will be the first initiative to combat gender-based violence that
includes joint UN and civil society governing structures and resource
mobilization processes. This is intended to significantly enhance and
deepen partnerships, linkages and resources at local, national, regional
and global levels to eliminate violence and provide much-needed assistance
to those threatened by such violence.

 
Media Inquiries
Vina Nadjibulla, Knowledge Management Specialist
UNIFEM Headquarters
+1 917-593-1406, vina.nadjibulla [at] unifem.org 


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UNIFEM is the women's fund at the United Nations, providing financial
support and technical assistance to innovative programmes promoting
women's human rights, their economic and political empowerment, and gender
equality in more than 100 countries. In 2006, UNIFEM is commemorating its
30th anniversary. For more information, visit www.unifem.org
{http://www.unifem.org}. UNIFEM, 304 East 45th Street, 15th Floor, New
York, NY 10017. Tel: +1 212-906-6400. Fax: +1 212-906-6705.