One Month On From Signing Sexual Violence Declaration – No Action Taken
One month on from signing the Declaration Of Commitment To End Sexual Violence In Conflict, the government of Burma appear to have taken no steps at all to implement the declaration.
Burma Campaign UK published a new briefing paper today looking at the 12 commitments the government has made to end sexual violence, and the progress made so far on each of these. Each was rated zero progress.
The briefing paper is available here.
On 5th June 2014 the government of Burma signed the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict. Burma was the 150th country to sign the Declaration and join the global initiative to combat sexual violence in conflict, which was launched by the British Foreign Secretary William Hague and UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict Zainab Bangura, in September 2013. The declaration contains practical and political commitments to end impunity, promote accountability, and provide justice and safety for victims of sexual violence in conflicts.
“Rather than implementing the declaration to end sexual violence, the Burmese government has arrested women who protested against the attempted rape of an ethnic Chin woman by a Burmese Army soldier”, said Zoya Phan, Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK. “The international community should not let this commitment become yet another broken promise by President Thein Sein. The longer the Burmese government delays taking action, the stronger the argument becomes for the international community to conduct its own investigation into sexual violence by the Burmese Army. As the country taking the lead on this issue internationally, Britain should take the lead in building international support for such an investigation.”