UN-Resolution 1820
By adopting Resolution 1820, the United Nations declared for the first time that the use of sexualised violence is a “tactic of war”. It is used to humiliate people, to exercise power over them, to instil fear into them, or to force them to relocate. The Resolution also represents a pioneering international acknowledgement that sexualised violence can pose a threat to world peace and international security.
Other core contents of UN Security Council Resolution 1820:
- it demands that all parties to armed conflict immediately and completely cease all acts of sexualised violence against civilians, with immediate effect;
- it declares that “rape and other forms of sexual violence can constitute war crimes [or] crimes against humanity”;
- it calls on UN Member States to fulfil their obligation to prosecute perpetrators; and
- it allows for country-specific sanctions against participants in armed conflicts who commit rape against women and girls.
