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Why We Support the PSVI

17 June 2015

The article ‘William Hague’s summit against warzone rape seen as “costly failure”’(Observer, 14 June 2015) deserves a response. It raises, perhaps not by intent, some of the crucial issues which need to be discussed as part of a strategy to combat gender-based and sexual violence (rape, mutilation, forced prostitution etc) in armed conflict: what needs to be prioritized, what does it look like, how do we determine budgetary allocation, what are the appropriate responses and how should we measure results?

By Madeleine Rees and Christine Chinkin

These are all big questions, but they do not address the question which is the summation of all those parts. That question is on sexual violence itself: why does it happen, how and why does it work, what are the integrated strategies that civil society, governments and the international community need to pursue in order to address it.

The Prevention of Sexual Violence Initiative (PSVI) set some very clear objectives, the end of impunity for the perpetrators of such crimes being the foremost. Lost in most of the media, however, was that this was the entry, not the end, point.

Syria-panel
In 2014, WILPF participated in the PSVI summit in London. The photo above is from our side event on Syria.

There was an understanding that there is an entire sub text, drawing on the knowledge and experience of the group of advisors brought together by William Hague. That sub text is about understanding the circularity of violence, particularly against women, and how we have to understand and address the political economy of that violence from a gender perspective if we are ever to end sexual violence in armed conflict.

Simply put; if men think of women as property, if violence at home or committed by family members is considered a private matter, if society continues to judge the conduct and dress of women in sexual violence cases, if the state fails to insist upon real and tangible equality for women in all fields – political, social, economic and cultural – and fails to engage with men in resolving the issue, then sexual violence in conflict and non-conflict will continue.

Some of this we have heard from William Hague whose commitment, we know, to be absolute. He publicly asserts that the leading issue of these times is the empowerment of women; he speaks of the need to address the root causes of sexual violence, of the need to see sexual violence in conflict as a matter of international peace and security. And he is right. Because of the socio-cultural subordination of women, rape will, and does, destroy communities, for all the wrong reasons; stigma shame, isolation, displacement and rejection.

Without peace within the family and community, forget peace nationally. The consequences are international. PSVI is thus a component of a global women, peace and security agenda that recognizes that “women’s and girls’ empowerment and gender equality are critical to efforts to maintain international peace and security.” Rape and sexual violence in conflict are thus a threat to international peace and security. It is that big. And wars will continue as long as States pursue belligerent foreign policies and flood the crisis areas of the world with ever more weaponry in compounding the sexual violence that conflict brings with it.

In response to the criticisms leveled; it is wrong to look at short term indicators such as the number of prosecutions, the number of experts deployed etc. Results will take many, many years. Rape in DRC will not end before the conflict does and even then will continue unless attitudes towards women also change. Legal frameworks have to be reformed and applied, mindsets transformed, social and economic systems put in place. These can only be achieved by national governments and hence the need to bring them on board and to keep them committed, a job started at the PSVI Summit in 2014 and continuing through UK embassies. Budget is important and funding has been used to support elements within the UN and also for work with local and international non-governmental organisations. Greater coherence is needed in this to ensure that money is most beneficially applied. To those who complain about the £ 5 million spent on the Summit, in relative terms, that was a tiny investment and it got over 100 States to sign up to commit to the cause. This should be compared with the more than £ 250 million pumped into the NATO conference in Wales in the autumn of 2014 to discuss military deployments – and look at how gendered that was!

The funding strategy should match what we know, and are continuing to learn, about effective prevention strategies. There can be no serious prevention without respect for, and delivery of human rights, including economic and social rights and equality. State legal systems must incorporate these fundamental obligations and they must be complied with.

PSVI has the potential to make a serious difference; it has started to do so and now needs to be strengthened.  Combatting gender-based and sexual violence against women is a fundamental obligation on governments, at home and abroad. It should inform all policies from trade to development assistance and absolutely in all foreign policy. The UK must not miss opportunities to advance the cause, whether it be by backing Sweden’s foreign minister, Margot Wallström, when she calls states out on their human rights records, particularly on violence against women, and takes action. We need the UK to be robust in demanding accountability for sexual violence by peacekeepers. The UK must insist on the participation of women in all peace processes in which it plays a part and must facilitate this. We need the government to stop the everyday sexism that is part of politics and to show they are seriously engaged. The government must become a party to the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combatting violence against women, including domestic violence to which it committed three years ago.

William Hague stood out as a man of principle when he started this Initiative; the principles he enunciated are above politics and are not negotiable. This government must reassert its manifesto commitment to continue with the work he started and respond to the gain sayers by an even greater and coherent and very public commitment. Those of us who work in civil society want this initiative to succeed and will give it the support is so merits. We also understand that there is no quick fix and that we all need to be in this for the long haul.

Read our article: WILPF Reflects on the Global Summit to end Sexual Violence in Conflict

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Matt Mahmoudi

Matt Mahmoudi (he/him) is a lecturer, researcher, and organizer. He’s been leading the “Ban the Scan” campaign, Amnesty International’s research and advocacy efforts on banning facial recognition technologies and exposing their uses against racialized communities, from New York City to the occupied Palestinian territories.

Berit Aasen

Europe Alternate Regional Representative

Berit Aasen is a sociologist by training and has worked at the OsloMet Metropolitan University on Oslo. She has 40 years of experience in research and consultancy in development studies, including women, peace, and security, and in later years in asylum and refugee studies. Berit Aasen joined WILPF Norway five years ago. She is an alternate member of the National Board of WILPF Norway, and representing WILPF Norway in the UN Association of Norway, the Norwegian 1325 network and the Norwegian Women’s Lobby. Berit Aasen has been active in the WILPF European Liaison group and is committed to strengthening WILPF sections and membership both in Europe and relations across continents.

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Melissa Torres

VICE-PRESIDENT

Prior to being elected Vice-President, Melissa Torres was the WILPF US International Board Member from 2015 to 2018. Melissa joined WILPF in 2011 when she was selected as a Delegate to the Commission on the Status of Women as part of the WILPF US’ Practicum in Advocacy Programme at the United Nations, which she later led. She holds a PhD in Social Work and is a professor and Global Health Scholar at Baylor College of Medicine and research lead at BCM Anti-Human Trafficking Program. Of Mexican descent and a native of the US/Mexico border, Melissa is mostly concerned with the protection of displaced Latinxs in the Americas. Her work includes training, research, and service provision with the American Red Cross, the National Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance Centre, and refugee resettlement programs in the U.S. Some of her goals as Vice-President are to highlight intersectionality and increase diversity by fostering inclusive spaces for mentorship and leadership. She also contributes to WILPF’s emerging work on the topic of displacement and migration.

Jamila Afghani

VICE-PRESIDENT

Jamila Afghani is the President of WILPF Afghanistan which she started in 2015. She is also an active member and founder of several organisations including the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organisation (NECDO). Elected in 2018 as South Asia Regional Representative to WILPF’s International Board, WILPF benefits from Jamila’s work experience in education, migration, gender, including gender-based violence and democratic governance in post-conflict and transitional countries.

A woman in a blue, black, and white dress smiles radiantly in front of a leafy green background.

Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo

PRESIDENT

Sylvie Jacqueline NDONGMO is a human rights and peace leader with over 27 years experience including ten within WILPF. She has a multi-disciplinary background with a track record of multiple socio-economic development projects implemented to improve policies, practices and peace-oriented actions. Sylvie is the founder of WILPF Cameroon and was the Section’s president until 2022. She co-coordinated the African Working Group before her election as Africa Representative to WILPF’s International Board in 2018. A teacher by profession and an African Union Trainer in peace support operations, Sylvie has extensive experience advocating for the political and social rights of women in Africa and worldwide.

WILPF Afghanistan

In response to the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban and its targeted attacks on civil society members, WILPF Afghanistan issued several statements calling on the international community to stand in solidarity with Afghan people and ensure that their rights be upheld, including access to aid. The Section also published 100 Untold Stories of War and Peace, a compilation of true stories that highlight the effects of war and militarisation on the region. 

IPB Congress Barcelona

WILPF Germany (+Young WILPF network), WILPF Spain and MENA Regional Representative

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Demilitarisation

WILPF uses feminist analysis to argue that militarisation is a counter-productive and ill-conceived response to establishing security in the world. The more society becomes militarised, the more violence and injustice are likely to grow locally and worldwide.

Sixteen states are believed to have supplied weapons to Afghanistan from 2001 to 2020 with the US supplying 74 % of weapons, followed by Russia. Much of this equipment was left behind by the US military and is being used to inflate Taliban’s arsenal. WILPF is calling for better oversight on arms movement, for compensating affected Afghan people and for an end to all militarised systems.

Militarised masculinity

Mobilising men and boys around feminist peace has been one way of deconstructing and redefining masculinities. WILPF shares a feminist analysis on the links between militarism, masculinities, peace and security. We explore opportunities for strengthening activists’ action to build equal partnerships among women and men for gender equality.

WILPF has been working on challenging the prevailing notion of masculinity based on men’s physical and social superiority to, and dominance of, women in Afghanistan. It recognizes that these notions are not representative of all Afghan men, contrary to the publicly prevailing notion.

Feminist peace​

In WILPF’s view, any process towards establishing peace that has not been partly designed by women remains deficient. Beyond bringing perspectives that encapsulate the views of half of the society and unlike the men only designed processes, women’s true and meaningful participation allows the situation to improve.

In Afghanistan, WILPF has been demanding that women occupy the front seats at the negotiating tables. The experience of the past 20 has shown that women’s presence produces more sustainable solutions when they are empowered and enabled to play a role.