Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

WATCH: In Vancouver Angelina Jolie Urges Un To Renew Efforts To Stop Sexual Violence In War

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 16 Nov, 2017 12:40 PM

    VANCOUVER — Angelina Jolie delivered a stinging rebuke Wednesday of global efforts to stop the use of sexual violence in war and called on the UN to finally help turn the tide.

     

    The Academy Award-winning actress was addressing foreign dignitaries and military officials attending the two-day United Nations peacekeeping summit, where the role of women in preventing conflict figured prominently.

     

    The meeting also saw a renewed push to prevent the use of child soldiers and better protect children caught in conflict, as attendees unveiled a series of commitments signed by 53 countries.

     

    Canada played a key role in advancing both conversations as host of the meeting and by pledging $21 million to increase the number and role of women in peacekeeping missions and military operations.

     

    The pledge was made amid a growing recognition that female personnel are essential when it comes to many peacekeeping tasks, such as helping victims of sexual violence and interacting with local women in the field.

     

     

    It also coincides with ongoing concerns about peacekeepers themselves sexually abusing or exploiting the very populations they have been ordered to protect.

     

    Yet only 7 per cent of the 13,000 police officers deployed as peacekeepers and two per cent of the 87,000 military personnel are women, and those numbers have remained stagnant despite promises to double them.

     

    During her address, Jolie, who is also a special envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, listed the many promises, laws and resolutions that have failed to eliminate sexual violence from war.

     

    And she didn't pull any punches as she blasted the UN's failure to increase the number of female peacekeepers deployed on missions, or its efforts to stop peacekeepers from sexually abusing vulnerable populations.

     

    "It has 21 years since the UN first promised to address sexual abuse by UN peacekeepers and to increase the number of women deployed in operations," she said.

     

    "Yet the exploitation of defenceless civilians still takes place. And still less than four per cent of all peacekeepers are women."

     

    But there was also an acknowledgment that a cultural shift is afoot, with Jolie saying that many military leaders have started "to address the taboos around these issues and to take action."

     

    Canada along with the United Kingdom and Bangladesh were singled out for special mention for promising to work together to increase the number of women and better incorporate gender perspectives in their militaries.

     
     

    That initiative was only one of several unveiled by the Trudeau government on Wednesday, along with a pledge of $21 million to boost the number of women in peacekeeping operations around the world.

     

    The money included $6 million to help with reforms at the UN and $15 million for a new trust fund that will be used to help countries increase the number of women in their respective militaries.

     

    The money could be used to facilitate partnerships with other countries that already boast sizable female contingents, and provide incentives to increase the deployment of women into the field.

     

    Several European countries also pledged to dramatically increase the number of female soldiers and police officers assigned to peacekeeping missions.

     

    "I hope they are just the beginning," Jolie said. "We will not only strengthen our societies and improve peacekeeping."

    MORE National ARTICLES

    De-Icing Fluid Gets Into Plane's A/C, Woman Taken To Hospital, Flight Grounded

    CALGARY — A WestJet flight going to Houston from Calgary was grounded and a woman aboard a plane was taken to hospital after being exposed to de-icing fluid.

    De-Icing Fluid Gets Into Plane's A/C, Woman Taken To Hospital, Flight Grounded

    Vancouver Man Missing Since Halloween, May Have Been Hiking Grouse Mountain

    Vancouver Man Missing Since Halloween, May Have Been Hiking Grouse Mountain
    Carl Couture, 24, was last seen at his home in the city's West End on Tuesday morning.

    Vancouver Man Missing Since Halloween, May Have Been Hiking Grouse Mountain

    CRA Vows Action On Canadian Tax Evaders Exposed In Paradise Papers

    CRA Vows Action On Canadian Tax Evaders Exposed In Paradise Papers
    OTTAWA — The Canada Revenue Agency says it won't hesitate to investigate new evidence of offshore tax evasion in the wake of a second massive leak of tax haven financial records.

    CRA Vows Action On Canadian Tax Evaders Exposed In Paradise Papers

    Michelle Obama In Toronto On Nov. 28 To Speak About Equality For Girls, Women

    TORONTO — Michelle Obama is coming to Canada later this month to speak about education and equality for girls and women around the world.

    Michelle Obama In Toronto On Nov. 28 To Speak About Equality For Girls, Women

    Study Finds 'Alarming Rate' Of OD Deaths Among Young Indigenous People In B.C.

    Study Finds 'Alarming Rate' Of OD Deaths Among Young Indigenous People In B.C.
    VANCOUVER — Indigenous drug users in British Columbia are 13 times more likely to die compared with other Canadians of the same age, says a decade-long study calling for cultural connections as a path to healing deep-rooted pain.

    Study Finds 'Alarming Rate' Of OD Deaths Among Young Indigenous People In B.C.

    RCMP Officer Injured, Man Sought After Gunfire Outside Kamloops, B.C., Hotel

    RCMP Officer Injured, Man Sought After Gunfire Outside Kamloops, B.C., Hotel
    Police say they're looking for a 41-year-old suspect after an RCMP officer was injured in an altercation in Kamloops, B.C.

    RCMP Officer Injured, Man Sought After Gunfire Outside Kamloops, B.C., Hotel