Activate Orange-Peace Delegates.

Gender-based violence spikes in conflict and post conflict societies, due to the general break down of the rule of law, the availability of small arms, the breakdown of social and family structures and the “normalization” of gender-based violence as an additional element of pre-existing discrimination.

It is a well-established fact that violent conflict disproportionately affects women and girls and intensifies pre-existing gender inequalities and discrimination. This makes the equal and full participation, as well as the contributions of women and girls to conflict prevention, peacekeeping, conflict resolution and peacebuilding of utmost importance.

The frequent under-representation of women in many formal processes and bodies related to the maintenance of peace and security, combined with the relatively low number of women in senior positions in political, peace and security-related national, regional and international institutions, contributes towards the lack of adequate gender sensitive humanitarian responses.

Women and girls should not only be seen as victims of conflict and instability. They have historically had and continue to have a role as combatants, as part of organized civil society, as human rights defenders, as members of resistance movements and as active agents in both formal and informal peacebuilding and recovery processes.