UN chief welcomes Int'l Day for Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon on Tuesday welcomed the decision of the General Assembly to establish June 19 as the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict.

The secretary-general commended member states and particularly the government of Argentina, as the sponsor of the resolution, for the increasing priority given to conflict related sexual violence, according to a statement of the secretary-general's spokesperson.

"This resolution is the achievement also of the continued work by the Secretary-General's Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Zainab Hawa Bangura, and his Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Leila Zerrougui, whose efforts have helped to galvanize political support resulting in concrete results at the national and regional levels to address conflict related sexual violence," said the statement.

Women's security and empowerment remain priorities for the Secretary-General. The international community must not rest until all violence against women and girls is eliminated, and women's full political and economic participation worldwide is ensured. These are critical for upholding human rights, as well as achieving sustainable development and peace, said the statement.

The United Nations General Assembly on June 19, 2015 approved by consensus a new resolution to commemorate June 19 as the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, according to the UN website.

The International Day - which will now be observed annually will aim to raise awareness of the need to end conflict-related sexual violence and urge the international community to stand in solidarity with the survivors of sexual violence around the world, said the UN website.

The new initiative comes amid an uptick in reports from areas controlled by militant groups aligned with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) of brutal acts of sexual violence against women and girls. Just last year, ISIL affiliate Boko Haram abducted some 276 girls from their school in Chibok, located in Nigeria's restive north-eastern Borno state, as the militant group ramped up brutal attacks targeting the African country's children.

The date June 19 marks the breakthrough adoption in 2008 of UN Security Council resolution 1820, which recognized sexual violence as a tactic of war and a threat to global peace and security, requiring an operational security, justice and service response. It further recognized that rape and other forms of sexual violence can constitute war crimes, crimes against humanity and/or acts of genocide. Enditem