Observatoire international des violences sexuelles dans les conflits armés
THE INTERNATIONAL MONITORING CENTRE ON SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN ARMED CONFLICTS
The International Monitoring Centre on Sexual Violence in Armed Conflicts is a platform gathering several organizations, in a broad objective of increasing public awareness on sexual violence in armed conflicts and of intensifying the struggle against this issue.
The activity of the Monitoring Centre can lead to plea or actions on the field, following the own vocation of each organization.
Its permanent tool is this website, that is maintained by the "International Advocacy" Department of the NGO Secours Catholique-Caritas France. The website aims to keep on a news and events watching activity for researchers, NGOs’ members, and also anyone who would be interested in the issue of sexual violence in armed conflicts.
WHAT MEANS "SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN AN ARMED CONFLICT" ?
Presumably, there is no perfect and definitive answer to this question. In order to lean on an objective reference, we can use definitions of the International Criminal Court, which was created by the “Rome Statute”: “rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced sterilization or any kind of other sexual violence of comparable severity” are crimes against the Humanity: “rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced sterilisation or any kind of other sexual violence constituting a serious violation of Geneva Convention”, as well as “damages on individual dignity, notably humiliating and degrading treatment” are war crimes.
- SEXUAL VIOLENCES IN ARMED CONFLICTS
- Purple: Civil Wars
Red: International Conflicts
Yellow: Inter-Communities Violences
Out of a legal context, we can refer to a definition by the historian Raphaëlle Branche (at the Symposium organised in Paris on November, 23th 2011), “rape is part of a repertoire (…) which can include denudation, forced prostitution, shearing, sexual mutilations, blows and injuries on sexual parts of the body”, that is substantively close to the “Rome Statute” definition.
The spread of the phenomenon in contemporary armed conflicts urged upon the International Community to react. International Organisations and NGOs fight to put an end to this flea. International Law and Justice repress it.
You can find below a PowerPoint presentation of the phenomenon (12 pages).
This website aims to provide information on the phenomenon. Beyond some information linked to the Monitoring Centre life, it includes documentation on the notion of rape and other sexual violence in armed conflicts, composed of international conventions, national legislations, criminal Justice reports, United-Nations and NGOs’ reports, a news watch, a bibliography, a filmography, thematic files and lastly a list of links to other pertinent websites.
Members
News
States and International Organizations Activities
Events
Justice and Sexual Violence in Armed Conflict
In-Depth Readings
Bibliography
Thematic Files
Filmography
Links