Every woman and girl deserves the opportunity to exercise their human rights and live a life of dignity and prosperity.
We have just concluded the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), an annual call to action running from the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (Nov. 25) to Human Rights Day (Dec. 10) to fulfill our global commitments to ending GBV wherever it occurs. We cannot and we will not tolerate GBV in times of peace or conflict. We must and we will support survivor access to comprehensive services and justice, as defined by survivors themselves. And we will condemn GBV in every instance and commit to hold perpetrators to account.
It is critical that we prioritize these commitments today. We are witnessing a new era of conflict and violence, with the highest number of active violent conflicts since World War II. And, throughout the world, we know conflicts and crises have a unique and often disproportionate impact on women and girls.
We have seen time and again that the risk and incidence of GBV increase during conflict. In Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Iran, South Sudan, Sudan, Ukraine, Yemen—in every region—women and girls are raped, sexually assaulted, subjected to domestic and intimate partner violence, and trafficked. Conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV), a form of GBV constituting incidents or patterns of sexual violence occurring in conflict or post-conflict settings with a direct or indirect link to conflict, can be an early warning sign for the onset of atrocities and an atrocity itself.
The current crisis in the Middle East is front of mind for many of us. We are deeply troubled by the staggering numbers of civilian injuries and deaths, including women and children. We are also horrified by the by the reports of rape and other forms of sexual violence used by Hamas to terrorize Israeli women and children during the attacks on Oct. 7, and unequivocally condemn these horrific acts. We are deeply concerned by the increased risk of GBV for women and girls in Gaza and the West Bank as a result of displacement, among other factors. We call for accountability for perpetrators of sexual violence in conflict and all forms of gender-based violence, and recognize the fundamental importance of comprehensive support to survivors and victims, because every woman and girl deserves the opportunity to exercise their human rights and live a life of dignity and prosperity.
Both in previous roles and as the ambassador-at-large for global women’s issues at the U.S. State Department, I have met many survivors of GBV, including CRSV. Hearing their stories fuels an anger in my belly that has spurred me to action. The same anger recommits me to work day in and day out to drive U.S. efforts to strengthen GBV prevention and response, ultimately aiming to eradicate the scourge of GBV.
I am equally motivated by the spirit of hope and resilience of survivors who have come forward—despite the stigma they may face—to advocate for other survivors, and to hold us to account, globally, to do better. We owe it to all survivors to do just that and to uphold our commitments as a global community.
Survivors must be meaningfully integrated into discussions of prevention and response to CRSV and in all aspects of political and security decision-making processes. They must be revered as leaders, their rights must be respected, and their voices must inform our policies and programmatic responses. While gender-based violence prevention and response is an integral part of assistance efforts globally, funding for this strategic imperative is declining and is woefully insufficient to meet current needs.
Addressing this vast and complex problem requires political will and long-term investment. As policymakers, we must engage local women-led groups and survivor networks across the justice continuum—including in political, ceasefire and peace negotiations. Inclusion continues to be viewed as a ‘nice to have’ rather than integral to resolving conflicts.
The United States has prioritized development and implementation of the U.S. National Strategy on Gender Equity and Equality and updated the U.S. Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally and the U.S. Strategy and National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security.
In November last year, President Biden issued a presidential memorandum on Promoting Accountability for CRSV, committing the U.S. government to fully exercise all financial, diplomatic and legal tools to address this scourge.
Connecting U.S. sanctions designations to acts of CRSV is a priority for the United States, and we’ve just announced additional sanctions connected to CRSV to mark Human Rights Day. We encourage other governments to join us in making this commitment.
The moment requires us to act urgently. Yes—to expand our research and knowledge base on CRSV prevention and response; and to employ evidence-based approaches to our work inside and outside of government. But most importantly: to always keep survivors front and center in everything we do.
To prevent conflict-related sexual violence, we must ultimately prevent conflict. Let that be our rallying cry.
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