Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

by Cat Rios-Keating

Benjamin B. Ferencz Fellow in Human Rights and Law

This past December I attended the Assembly of States Parties meeting of the International Criminal Court (ICC in The Hague, Netherlands. served as a delegate for World Without Genocide and the American Coalition for the International Criminal Court.

As a delegate to the Assembly of States Parties (ASP), I was asked to focus on  specific topics and to attend special meetings that were held on those topics.  One of the topics that I covered was the issue of sexual and gender- based violence (SGBV). I went to a session at which the film The Prosecutors was screened. The documentary focuses on three national justice processes: trials of perpetrators of SGBV in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Colombia, and Bosnia- Herzegovina.

The film shows the disparities in outcomes in each of the cases. In the DRC, of thirty-nine soldiers and officers who were tried on charges of rape (creating over 150 rape victims), only two people were convicted.

Marco Tulio, “El Oso” the leader in a military organization that devastated and controlled communities in Colombia through SGBV, was found guilty and was sentenced to thirteen years in prison.

Prosecutor Sandra Moreno, who fought for justice for victims of SGBV under “El Oso” in Colombia.

Lastly, in Bosnia -Herzegovina, prosecutor Sandra Moreno investigated war crimes of murder, assault, and rape committed on a border town with Croatia. Two perpetrators were sentenced to prison terms, one to seven years and the other to thirteen years. The victims finally received some justice twenty years after the war had ended.

The Prosecutors side event showed how international pressure can push nations to develop their own justice systems and allow victims better access to local justice.

I would highly encourage all to see this film. Go to: http://www.theprosecutorsmovie.com/ for – how to access the film.

Interested in getting involved in the global campaign to end SGBV?

Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice (Women’s Initiatives) invites the international community to participate in creating a shared definition of sexual violence. To complete the survey, click on the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdxfIr6sooZ7JoeuDFAB5mpGfoWyNlfxT0Zvabz5oFJ7QdJ5w/viewform.