Sarajevo to host presentation of International Protocol on Sexual Violence in Wars on Wednesday

More than 300 representatives of government and judicial institutions, non-governmental and international organizations will attend the official presentation of the International Protocol on Documenting and Investigating Cases of Sexual Violence in Conflict in Sarajevo tomorrow, reports the BiH news agency Patria (NAP).

The conference will be opened by Edward Ferguson, British Ambassador to BiH, Bakir Izetbegović, member of the Presidency of BiH, and Ambassador Jonathan Moore, Head of the OSCE Mission to BiH.

During the conference, participants will have the opportunity to learn from representatives of key institutions, such as Milan Tegeltija, President of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of BiH, and Marina Pendeš, Deputy Minister of Defence of BiH, why the Protocol is significant, as well as what measures have already been implemented in BiH. 

The Protocol was officially presented at the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict, held in June 2014 in London, at the initiative of the then UK Foreign Secretary William Hague and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Special Envoy Angelina Jolie.

The aim of the initiative is to break the culture of impunity for cases of sexual violence in conflict; the Protocol is one of the main tools to truly achieve this.

The Protocol requires states to strengthen local legislation so that those responsible for sexual violence in conflict can be reliably prosecuted within and outside the countries where these horrific crimes were committed. To this end, three training modules will also be officially presented at this event, which will serve as the basis for a training program specifically designed for judges and prosecutors, war crimes investigators, and members of the armed forces.

This event is a joint effort of the British Embassy Sarajevo, the OSCE Mission to BiH, BIRN, the Post-Conflict Research Center (PCRC), the Peace Support Operations Training Centre, Medica Zenica, as well as other non-governmental organizations and institutional partners.

According to unofficial data, between 20,000 and 50,000 people survived sexual violence in BiH during the bloody conflicts from '92 to '95.

The presentation of the International Protocol will be held in the Congress Hall of the BiH Parliament at 11:00 AM, reports NAP.