President Donald Trump is leading the way on ending conflicts around the world. At the same time, where conflicts do continue, “it is imperative that we take action, individually and collectively, to protect the most vulnerable – most often, girls and women,” declared Ambassador Tammy Bruce, U.S. Deputy Representative to the United Nations.
Sexual violence remains a scourge in war and in domestic life. “Unfortunately, the UN Secretary-General’s latest report on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence fails to support tangible actions,” noted Ambassador Bruce. “Instead, it focuses on words – empty rhetoric, often in pursuit of ideological positions that undermine national sovereignty.”
Reports like this one demonstrate the degree to which the Office of the Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict has drifted away from its original purpose and reinforce why the United States has ceased participating in the Office’s activities.
The United States condemns sexual violence as a tactic of war and is prepared to use all the tools at its disposal, including targeted sanctions, to impose costs on perpetrators and their networks, said Ambassador Bruce. And it has done so.
In February, the Treasury Department announced sanctions against three commanders of the Rapid Support Forces, or RFS, for their actions in El-Fasher, Sudan. Since the beginning of Sudan’s civil war, the RSF has committed widespread atrocities, including rape and other sexual violence against women and children.
Last month, the Treasury Department also announced sanctions against two commanders from M23 and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda armed groups with documented histories of human rights abuses, including sexual violence, in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Ambassador Bruce encouraged “all UN Member States to join the United States in strengthening their own accountability mechanisms to ensure that perpetrators of conflict-related sexual violence are held responsible.”
“The United States will continue to uphold our commitments and to call for concrete actions to protect those most at risk.”
“Violence against women and children, sexual and otherwise, condemns the potential of humanity itself,” declared Ambassador Bruce. “It cannot be seen as an artifact of the human condition. As civilized people, we can overcome that, and we must.”