Conflict-related Sexual Violence: Annual Open Debate*
Tomorrow (19 August), the Security Council will convene for its annual open debate on conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). Panama, the Council president in August, has titled this year’s debate “Identifying innovative strategies to ensure access to life-saving services and protection to survivors of sexual violence in conflict zones”. Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten and a civil society representative are the expected briefers.
At the time of writing, the signatories to the Shared Commitments on Women, Peace and Security (WPS)—Denmark, France, Greece, Guyana, Panama, the Republic of Korea (ROK), Sierra Leone, Slovenia, the UK, and the US—were negotiating a joint statement on CRSV to be read at a stakeout prior to the meeting.
A concept note circulated by Panama states that the open debate will focus on sustaining access to “quality, life-saving multisectoral services” for CRSV survivors amid escalating armed conflicts in which healthcare infrastructure is often targeted, destroyed, or rendered inaccessible. The open debate will also examine how to sustain efforts to prevent and address sexual violence during and after the drawdowns and transitions of UN peace operations. Noting that these processes can result in significant security, assistance, and monitoring vacuums, the concept note stresses the need to focus on the protection of women and girls and to strengthen gender-sensitive early warning systems in these contexts.
Additionally, the concept note says that the open debate will explore how to address the gaps resulting from the UN’s diminished capacity in conflict-affected zones, in order to support international and local actors engaged in CRSV prevention and response. In this regard, the concept note stresses that community-based, women-led organisations and human rights defenders “often play a critical front-line role in delivering these services and must be adequately supported”.
At tomorrow’s meeting, Patten is expected to focus on the Secretary-General’s latest annual report on CRSV, which was published on 14 August and covers the period from January to December 2024. The report documents cases of CRSV against over 4,600 survivors, the vast majority of which (92 percent) affected women. The report covers 14 conflict settings (Afghanistan, the Central African Republic (CAR), Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Israel and the State of Palestine, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Ukraine, and Yemen); four post-conflict settings (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iraq, Nepal, and Sri Lanka); and three situations of concern (Ethiopia, Haiti, and Nigeria). The highest number of cases verified by the UN in 2024 (823) was recorded in the DRC; of these cases, 29 incidents took place in previous years.
Patten is expected to highlight emerging concerns and patterns related to CRSV. She may note that in an increasing number of contexts, non-state armed groups used sexual violence as a tactic to control territory and natural resources, and that women and girls perceived to be associated with rival forces have been targeted. Patten may emphasise that the proliferation of small arms and light weapons directly fuelled these violations in almost all settings covered in the report. She may also highlight concerns regarding widespread patterns of CRSV affecting displaced, refugee, and migrant women in some contexts, including the DRC, Haiti, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, and Sudan.
Among other issues, Patten may draw attention to protection gaps during withdrawals and drawdowns of UN peace operations. In this regard, the Secretary-General’s report notes that, currently, when peace operations close or transition, the assessed contributions that were funding them are not reallocated to peacebuilding, humanitarian action, or sustainable development, thereby jeopardising “hard-won gains” for the WPS agenda, including on CRSV prevention and response. The report recommends that the Council ensures that mandate authorisations, renewals, drawdowns, and withdrawals integrate measures to prevent protection gaps, including regarding CRSV, and urges “the retention and accelerated deployment of women’s protection advisers”.
Tomorrow, Council members and other speakers are expected to condemn all forms of CRSV, including its use as a tactic of war. In line with the focus of this year’s open debate, several participants are likely to stress the importance of adopting a survivor-centred approach in responses to CRSV, and highlight the need to enhance access to services, including sexual and reproductive health and rights, psychosocial support, economic empowerment, and access to justice. Many are expected to call for accountability and underscore the need to end impunity for perpetrators of CRSV.
Several participants may express grave concern at attacks on healthcare infrastructure, which have undermined key services, and urge conflict parties to guarantee unimpeded humanitarian access and the safety of humanitarian personnel. Some Council members may also stress the importance of respecting international humanitarian and human rights law. Council members may highlight the role of women-led organisations in CRSV response and documentation, particularly in contexts where healthcare facilities are damaged or non-operational. Some may also call for a zero-tolerance approach to attacks against women civil society leaders and human rights defenders.
Many speakers are also likely to underscore the importance of women’s full, equal, and meaningful participation—including in political and decision-making processes—and of advancing gender equality and women’s rights to address the deeper causes of gender-based violence.
Additionally, several participants are expected to express concern about developments in specific country situations, such as Sudan, where in 2024 the UN documented 131 CRSV cases, of which 82 occurred in 2023. The report says that elements of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and allied militias were “implicated in most cases”, while also noting that members of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and other armed movements were also implicated. The report echoes the findings of the Panel of Experts assisting the Security Council’s 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee, which reported that non-Arab women, in particular from the Masalit community, were targeted on the basis of their ethnic identity by RSF members and allied militias.
As mandated by resolution 1960 of 16 December 2010, the Secretary-General’s report includes an annex listing “parties that are credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of rape and other forms of sexual violence in situations of armed conflict”. This year, new listings include: the group Résistance pour un Etat de Droit (RED Tabara) in the DRC; the Deterrence Agency for Combatting Organized Crime and Terrorism (DACOT), the Department for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM), and the Internal Security Agency (Benghazi) in Libya; and Hamas in “Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory”.
In a controversial development, this year’s annual report introduces an appendix on parties “implicated in patterns of CRSV”, which are being “put on notice” for potential listing in next year’s report. The parties listed in this section are the Russian armed and security forces and affiliated armed groups, and the Israeli armed and security forces. The report cites “consistent denial of access” for UN monitors that impeded making “definitive determinations” as reasons for establishing this new category. At the same time, some Council members apparently believe that the new category was created also as the result of significant pressure from at least one of the parties, which sought to avoid inclusion in the report’s regular annex. The UN has denied this assessment.
It seems that several members intend to express concern about the situation in these two contexts. Other situations that may be mentioned tomorrow include the DRC, Ethiopia, Haiti, Libya, Myanmar, and South Sudan. Some members are also likely to highlight national and international initiatives on preventing and eradicating CRSV.
While several Council members tomorrow are likely to express support for the UN architecture addressing CRSV, dynamics on WPS remain difficult. Russia has opposed the term “CRSV”, arguing that it leads to a blurring of sexual crimes that occur in peacetime and during armed conflict, thereby unduly expanding the purview of the Council’s mandate. Most other Council members and civil society groups working on women’s rights reject this argument. Russia has also opposed Patten’s participation in meetings of sanction committees and country-specific Council meetings apparently because of past statements she has made about the conduct of Russian forces in Ukraine. Since the start of President Donald Trump’s term in January, the US has sought to remove or weaken language on WPS during Council negotiations, with a particular focus on references to gender.
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**Post-script (20 August): The US, which signed on to the Shared Commitments on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in July 2023, did not participate in the joint statement. During the negotiations, the US apparently objected to language that other members of the Shared Commitments initiative believed essential to the joint statement, such as references to gender.
