Human Rights Council 40: Violence against children and children and armed conflict
The UK reiterated concerns regarding continued violations and encouraged efforts to ensure accountability and eradicate stigmatisation of children born of sexual violence in war.
Thank you Mr Vice-President,
The UK thanks both Ms. Gamba and Mme. Santos Pais for their reports and reaffirms our strong support for their mandates.
We strongly echo Ms. Gamba’s concern that grave violations continue to be committed globally on an alarming scale, notably in South Sudan despite the signing of a peace agreement. A particular concern is the continued, deliberate killing and maiming of children and their exposure to conflict-related sexual violence, systematically used as weapons of war by all sides. The UK calls on the Government of South Sudan to take immediate action to end all grave violations, ensuring accountability. We call on all parties to honour their commitments and fully implement UN Action Plans.
As a signatory to the Paris Commitments, Vancouver Principles and Safe Schools Declaration, the UK is committed to ensuring its military supports these instruments. The UK has a Joint Service Publication on Human Security in Military Operations and a training course on integrating UN Security Council Resolutions into military operations and responding to children in conflict. We strongly urge other states to endorse these instruments and mainstream child protection in military operations.
As a member of the Global Coalition for Reintegration, the UK sees a strong case of principle for re-galvanising reintegration procedures and support Ms. Gamba’s valuable work in this area.
In November, the UK will host an international conference on preventing sexual violence in conflict. A key focus is how to better support children born of sexual violence in conflict, including tackling stigma. We ask how can we galvanise the international community to better support this important issue?
Thank you Mr Vice-President.