(London) – The UAE has called on all governments to unite to stop sexual violence, including rape, in conflict zones and hold the perpetrators accountable. Addressing the Global Summit on Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict, hosted by the UK Government, which concluded in London, H.E. Reem Al Hashemi, Minister of State who headed the UAE delegation to the conference, said, “The occurrence of rape and other forms of sexual violence in conflict is a crime that affects people in the most horrific and enduring manner. The UAE hopes that all governments will unite behind the goals of this initiative and speak with one voice to express our contempt for these crimes and our common determination to hold the perpetrators accountable.”
More than 1,200 international delegates, including heads of state, heads of governments, senior ministers, and representatives of civil society, NGOs, the military, the judiciary, the private sector and a host of UN agencies attended the landmark summit.
The summit is the largest gathering ever held on this issue, and was co-chaired by UK Foreign Secretary William Hague and Angelina Jolie, Special Envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
The four-day summit aimed to turn pledges into practical action on the ground to protect women, girls, men and boys from sexual attacks, to discuss how to improve and standardise the investigation of large-scale sexual violence in wartime, and to bring an end to a culture of impunity that has severely limited prosecutions up to now.
