The United Nations Mission in South Sudan and its partners today celebrated the first ‘International Day on the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict’, in Juba.

Speaking during the occasion, the UNMISS Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Mr. Eugene Owusu, said that the 2013 conflict had negatively impacted women and girls, including reports of systematic crimes of sexual violence.

He started his speech by reading the UN Secretary-General’s message for the day:

“The world continues to witness appalling levels of sexual violence in wartime. No region is immune to this scourge, which continues to affect women, girls, boys and men,” part of the document read.

 “We must continue to speak up for the women, girls, men and boys whose bodies for too long have been considered the spoils of war,” the statement ended.

Mr. Owusu then added to the SG’s statement saying that the formation of the Transitional Government of National Unity, however, should offer South Sudan the only promise for peace, which should usher in progress towards eliminating sexual violence in the country.

He said that modest actions had been taken by both the government and the UN recently through the signing of a joint communique between the two in 2014, leading to the development of an action plan and the establishment of a Joint Technical Working Group to end sexual violence.

“There is a need to ensure that attitudes towards women and girls do not create a permissive environment for sexual violence in South Sudan,” he said.

Mary Ayen Majok, Chairperson for Gender, Peace and Reconciliation at the State National Legislative Assembly, said that the peace agreement had given room for stakeholders to develop concrete steps to address crimes of sexual violence and to end impunity.

“There is a real need to see actions move away from impunity and end violence, while ensuring transitional justice against crimes,” Ms. Ayen said, adding that this would help deter perpetrators from committing such felonies.

Also in attendance was Jeffrey N. Bakken, a representative of the U.S. Embassy in South Sudan.  Mr. Bakken went on to remark, “Sexual violence is a brutal tool…that is used against civilians…a systematic tactic of war to humiliate, damage, terrorize and forcefully displace them.”

Mr. Bakken said it was important that all stakeholders recognize the enormous physical and psychological toll of such violence on an individual and ultimately on her/his society.

“Physical wounds might heal, but psychological damage might continue,” he said. “No risk of punishment for impunity increases the chances that these crimes might continue.”

He said that meaningful participation of women in the peace process was critical to promoting lasting peace and gender equity and to reduce the cycle of sexual violence in conflict.

“Evidence shows that a peace agreement is more likely to be reached and more likely to last when women are meaningfully involved,” he said.

Forced pregnancy, abduction, forced sterilization, rape, molestation and forced prostitution and marital rape are the most notable sexually violent crimes in the country.

Tim Morris, the British Ambassador to South Sudan, said that women must be empowered so they can raise their voices and concerns to speak up against such abhorrent crimes.

“Anyone who perpetrates act of sexual violence is a coward and a criminal,” said the Ambassador.