Sexual violence in conflicts is not only a crime perpetrated upon an individual, it is a crime perpetrated upon the whole of the society, it is a tool of war. Guilt lies upon those who perpetrated the crime, not with the victims of the crime. The victims of this crime are innocent.
Honourable participants,
Sexual violence in conflicts is not only a crime perpetrated upon an individual, it is a crime perpetrated upon the whole of the society, it is a tool of war. Guilt lies upon those who perpetrated the crime, not with the victims of the crime. The victims of this crime are innocent.
There is no doubt that as in all other societies worldwide, in our society as well this heinous tool of war has destroyed lives and families, has touched upon the values of the society and has shattered in half the dreams of hundreds of thousands of innocent people, with the intention to cause misery, enslavement and silence.
But we have decided not to remain silent in front of this crime, we have become the voice of all those victims, we have become their strength and their hope for a better future, a future of peace for our country, for all those who sacrificed so much.
In marking the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, an initiative of the United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary, Mr. William Hague and the Special Envoy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Ms. Angelina Jolie, together we take an important step ahead by raising our voices against sexual violence as a tool of war, a crime as grave as all other crimes perpetrated during the war.
Together we are breaking down the walls of solitude which have surrounded for years our mothers, our sisters and our daughters. We are recognizing the destructive and burdensome consequences it has left behind; we are recognizing the need to say Stop. The need to allow no longer anyone to abuse and defame the victims and no longer allow anyone to remain unpunished for the crimes committed.
We are raising our voices for all those innocents who live shriveled lives today; we say stop to this form of violence and we say to the perpetrators that they will no longer remain unpunished.
I am proud that our society understood that it will not find peace without their peace. We have only taken the initial steps towards returning the dignity of survivors, and we have a lot to do ahead of us in order to offer to them the treatment they deserve, it is our civic and institutional obligation and we will fulfill it.
We say no to stigmatization, no to sexual violence, to this form of torture.
I would like to thank all those men and women, who believed in their right, who fought incessantly for their rights, who did not stop even when threatened and demeaned. We will turn this common dedication and commitment of ours into concrete work in order to return these survivors into our midst, where they belong. Because there is no us and them. We are us and we are one.
Thank you.