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<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.unwomen.org/en"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="126" height="36" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01D43A3A.531694D0" alt="UN Women – United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women"></span></a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><b><span lang="EN" style="font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">The Invisible Wounds to Women & Girls Damage All of Us
<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><b><i><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">Joint statement by Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women Executive Director and Christos Stylianides,
European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management </span></i></b><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">August 19, 2018 - As the world marked World Humanitarian Day under the theme #NotATarget, to
bring attention to the millions of civilians affected by armed conflict globally, we call for special attention to the extensive gender-based violence taking place during situations of conflict and disaster. The anguish seen in the faces of those whose homes
and livelihoods have been destroyed is also likely to reflect losses and wounds that are less visible, equally devastating, and insufficiently acknowledged. One in five refugees and internally displaced peoples are experiencing sexual violence, and practices
such as child marriage, female genital mutilation and human trafficking during emergencies are resulting in lives lost or damaged, societies destabilized, recoveries delayed and human rights neglected, particularly for women and girls. These are losses to
all of us; prejudicing economic recovery, the sustainable success of peace processes, and the growth of human capital that restores the damaged balance.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">Both natural and human-induced disasters are increasing, and with them rises the toll on affected
populations. By the end of last year, more than 68 million people had been forced to flee from their homes due to conflict. We know that the risk of sexual and gender-based violence, fueled by existing gender inequalities and power imbalances, increases during
disasters and conflict. This is in part because the Women and girls who shoulder household care are particularly exposed to greater risk as they travel longer distances to find water, fuel, food and work opportunities, while protection mechanisms weaken or
fail.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">Addressing gender-based violence is life-saving. Despite its prevalence, prevention of and
response to sexual- and gender-based violence are rarely undertaken from the earliest stages of emergencies. Moreover, there are insufficient mechanisms in place at the policy, funding, systems, and implementation levels to ensure that this violence will be
comprehensively addressed and prioritized.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">As members of the global initiative<i> Call to Action on Protection from Gender-Based Violence
in Emergencies</i>, the European Union and UN Women have called on the humanitarian community to address gender-based violence in emergencies from the onset of a crisis and to ensure the participation and leadership of local organizations, specifically women’s
organizations, in gender-based violence prevention and response. The particular risks faced by women and girls can be heightened when humanitarians overlook women’s strength and agency.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">Important work has been developed under the EU-UN Women humanitarian partnership to explain
why gender-sensitivity, gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls are essential to humanitarian action; how needs assessments can be used in strategic humanitarian planning and programming; how transformative, lasting change can be achieved; and
how to integrate gender perspectives into the humanitarian programming cycle and into all sectors for more sustainable, long-lasting peace processes. This complements the work of the new EU-UN Spotlight Initiative, which is developing a comprehensive approach
to ending violence against women and girls.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">It is through such strong, multilateral partnerships, which harness our individual strengths,
that we will tackle sexual and gender-based violence and ensure that women and girls are #NotATarget but instead a critical resource.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span lang="EN" style="font-size:10.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#595A5C">We call on the humanitarian community to incorporate a broader, gender-responsive approach
that addresses the root causes of gender-based violence; and to recognize women as leaders and decision-makers in times of crisis.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
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