Sexual Violence in Conflict

November 25th was the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. A fairly recent UN study entitled "In-depth study on all forms of violence against women" notes that "there are still many forms of violence that remain largely undocumented" including "sexual violence against women in armed conflict and post-conflict situations" (p. 66), among others.

One effort to improve the quality and reliability of data is under way at the Geneva Centre for Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF). The Centre plans to publish a Global Report on Sexual Violence in Conflict in May 2007. The report will include, among other things, "country profiles with a brief summary of the conflict and qualitative and quantitative data on sexual violence in this conflict." The Centre is soliciting input to the report in the form of data and examples of good practice in response to sexual violence in conflict situations. Read the project summary for more information.

To date, the DCAF, in its capacity as a founding member of the Alliance for Direct Action against Rape in Conflicts and Crises (AllianceDARC), has produced a discussion paper on the challenges of data collection in this area and has compiled a bibliography.

Posted in Publications and Events/Opportunities.