The Political Academy of Women (APM), a Mozambican organization, called on Monday for an end to impunity for cases of violence and sexual abuse against women and girls in armed conflicts such as that of Cabo Delgado.
Cases of violence and sexual abuse against women and girls in the context of armed conflict must be prosecuted and the perpetrators must be punished and the outcome of the cases published, as a way of dissuading more cases from being registered,” reads the statement. a commemorative statement. the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, celebrated on Sunday.
At stake are the “kidnappings” of women and girls by insurgentsbut also incidents “in reception centers and when prostituting with soldiers”.
These are situations denounced in studies carried out by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and UN Women on the “prevalence of generalized violence against displaced women and girls in Cabo Delgado”, a province in northern Mozambique under unleashed armed conflict for rebels. Four and a half years ago.
“Data referring to situations are rarely included in reports on armed conflicts, which in a certain way limits adequate assistance to victims” and “increases the level of vulnerability of women, exposing them to scenarios of danger and multiple local discriminations” , warns the APM. .
The solutions can be simple, going through the “effective application of legal provisions, such as the Constitution of the Republic and international instruments”.
Cabo Delgado province is rich in natural gas but has been terrorized since 2017 by armed rebels, with some attacks claimed by the Islamic State extremist group.
There are 784,000 internally displaced due to the conflictaccording to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and some 4,000 dead, according to the ACLED conflict registration project.
Since July 2021, an offensive by government troops with the support of Rwanda, to which the Southern African Development Community (SADC) later joined, has allowed the recovery of areas where there was a presence of rebels, but their flight has provoked new attacks. . in other districts used as a step or temporary shelter.
Source: Observadora
