Following on from the UK government's push for international action to address the problem of sexual violence in conflict, the FCO's International Protocol Project Coordinator, outlined the challenges that need to be addressed in documenting and investigating such crimes.
See here for full piece, extract reproduced below:
See here for full piece, extract reproduced below:
'Our objective is to create a consistent set of guidelines that are used by first responders to ensure that survivors of these attacks receive consistent and sympathetic responses but also that information that is collected from them (physical and testimony) is taken and stored in a way that assists future prosecutions or other justice mechanisms.
Development of the International Protocol is progressing at a pace. In May (in The Hague), June (in London) and July (in The Hague) we held consultations with experts to agree the content of the Protocol. In September (in Geneva) we held consultations with State representatives at the United Nations to discuss some of the challenges in documenting and investigating crimes of the sexual violence in conflict and the purpose of the International Protocol.
A range of experts have provided us with some useful feedback and guidance, all of which we are feeding into the International Protocol. A developed draft should be sent to the experts for review in a matter of weeks. We look forward to working with them over the next few months to develop further the language and to make some concrete plans for testing and implementation. We have already started the process, and have made initial plans with our Embassy and NGO network to take the International Protocol to Africa and Asia for field-testing in early 2014. Watch this space for further plans to test the Protocol internationally in the coming months.
The International Protocol will be launched at the London Summit on Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict, which the UK will host in June 2014.'