Today marks the International Day of the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict. 

The UN stated that in 2023 there were 34 ongoing armed conflicts happening around the world, the highest number since the end of the Cold War.

In each of these conflicts the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war mean that women and girls have more reasons to be afraid, of not only losing their family, their homes, their communities but of experiencing rape & sexual violence as a weapon of war.

Wartime sexual violence is one of history’s greatest silences and one of today’s most extreme atrocities. In many contexts, sexual violence is not merely the action of rogue soldiers, but a deliberate tactic of warfare. It displaces, terrorizes and destroys individuals, families and entire communities, reaching unthinkable levels of cruelty against women of all ages from infants to grandmothers. It can leave the survivors with emotional trauma and psychological damage, physical injuries, unwanted pregnancies, social stigma and sexually transmitted infections such as HIV.

The fear of sexual violence holds communities hostage and prevents women and girls from participating in public life or attending school. The costs and consequences last for generations. And often, mass rape continues after the guns fall silent and peace treaties are signed. Survivors’ voices are too often silenced, their experiences dismissed because the stigma that still surrounds sexual violence, even when weaponised and used to terrorize civilians.

We stand with everyone who has experienced sexual violence, but today we choose to raise awareness of the deliberate choice made by those who choose to use sexual violence to control, terrorise and abuse women & girls around the world, who are only trying to survive the conflict they find themselves in.