Bangladesh joins global conference on sexual violence in conflict

An estimated 20% to 30% of women and girls in conflict-affected settings experience sexual violence, according to a new study. 

A two-day conference in London from 28 to 29 November – marking 10 years of the UK government's landmark Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) – aims to drive forward urgent action to tackle the scourge of sexual violence in conflict, said a press release issued by the UK High Commission in Dhaka on Monday.

Representatives from around 70 countries including Bangladesh will attend the conference that will put survivors of this crime at the centre of the global response. 

Bangladesh is represented by Fazilatun Nessa Indira, state minister for Women and Childrens' Affairs, Hasanuzzaman Kallol, secretary of Ministry of Women and Childrens' Affairs, and Saida Muna Tasneem, Bangladesh High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.

The delegation also includes human rights activists Shireen Huq and Rani Yan Yan, lawyers Raziya Sultana and Sara Hussain, academic Bina D'Costa, and artist Leesa Gazi.

Nadia Murad and Dr Denis Mukwege – who won a joint Nobel Peace Prize for their work to combat sexual violence – will attend the event alongside the Countess of Wessex and International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan. 

Opening the conference, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said, "The very threat of rape and sexual violence as a weapon of war, or as part of its aftermath, should bring immediate international condemnation, and swift action to deter those attacks before they occur."

"Today, we stand in solidarity with survivors, determined to bring justice. And today I want to send an unequivocal message to those who order, allow or perpetrate sexual violence against women and girls: it is not combat; it is not strength; it is cowardice," said Cleverly, adding, "We will not rest in our efforts to protect those potential victims, and prosecute the perpetrators."