I’m not a fan of hot air. Although when you’re floating in a balloon over Australia’s capital city Canberra, and it’s the only thing keeping you up there, you’re rather glad of it. The balloon was emblazoned with the hashtag #TimeToAct. We were drawing attention to the Global Summit on Ending Sexual Violence in Conflict, which is taking place in London this week.
It is the biggest ever summit of its kind. And it’s anything but hot air. The focus is on urgent actions to tackle this terrible scourge. Using rape as a weapon of war is one of the most horrendous crimes imaginable. It is used to terrorise, humiliate and ethnically cleanse. It is found all over the world, wherever conflict exists. Twenty years ago in Europe as many as 50,000 women and girls were raped in Bosnia, but there have been only 30 convictions. The perpetrators usually walk away unpunished whilst the victims silently bear stigma and shame alongside their suffering. There are similar stories from conflict zones in many countries.
That’s why William Hague, together with Angelina Jolie, is hosting the Global Summit this week. Countries are going to be signing up to a new International Protocol on documenting and investigating sexual violence in conflict. And they will be supporting financial and technical assistance for legal and health professionals and NGOs working in conflict zones. This will increase the prospect of attackers being prosecuted.
We flew over Australia’s Parliament building where, just last week, Foreign Minster Julie Bishop and I co-hosted a Dialogue on Sexual Violence in Conflict, demonstrating Australia’s strong support for the initiative. Australia is being represented in London this week by its Ambassador for Women and Girls, Natasha Stott Despoja and its Chief of Army, Lt Gen David Morrison.
Personally I am not very keen on heights, so it was with some trepidation that I clambered into the basket. But we wanted to use this great opportunity to draw the attention of the Australian media and the public to this very important event. See the videoblog here.
The Summit is not just about changing laws; it’s about changing mindsets. We want to create a groundswell of public opinion around the world to end the culture of impunity and ensure justice is done. Everyone can join in to offer their support. As the hashtag says, it’s #timetoact.
