April 26, 2019
On April 23, the Security Council adopted the most recent resolution (2467) on sexual violence in conflict. It calls for a victim-centred approach in all UN actions and stresses the importance of providing healthcare and psychological support to the victims and vulnerable groups. However, according to several NGOs working on sexual and reproductive health and rights, a major weakness of this resolution is the general disregard for the right of victims to sexual and reproductive health services, including safe abortion.
In a statement published on their website, Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice wrote:
“Despite the call for concrete commitments in the fight against sexual violence in conflict, Resolution 2467 fails to recognize the critical right of access to sexual and reproductive health services. This omission, resulting from pressure from the United States and others, is a disservice to survivors. We call on the states that voiced the critical need to respect the right of survivors of sexual violence to access sexual and reproductive health services to continue advocating for a true survivor-centered approach, and to work toward a Resolution that includes the explicit recognition of this right’’ said Women’s Initiatives Executive Director Melinda Reed. ‘‘The right of sexual violence survivors to comprehensive reproductive and sexual health services should not be subject to debate.”
Source: https://4genderjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Statement-UNSCR-2467.pdf