Angelina Jolie, NATO to fight sexual violence in war zones

Brussels Feb 1 (IANS) Special Envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Angelina Jolie on Wednesday met with NATO s Secretary General and agreed to work together in fighting sexual violence in war zones.

Jens Stoltenberg said NATO was not only an alliance providing defence against military threats but also a political alliance based on the core values of democracy individual liberty rule of law and the UN Charter and therefore NATO had the responsibility of protecting women s rights.

"Today Special Envoy Jolie and I have decided to work together. Focusing on three points: training monitoring and reporting and awareness " Xinhua quoted Stoltenberg as saying.

He added that the North Atlantic organisation had already deployed gender advisors in their military operations in Kosovo and in Afghanistan.

In her first visit to NATO headquarters in Brussels Jolie denounced that the use of sexual violence against women and children in war zones had become "increasingly a feature of violence and insecurity worldwide" converting rape into a "weapon of war" seeking "to achieve military or political goals" and a "major factor in the creation of refugee flows."

"The use of rape as a weapon of war has been regarded an inevitable feature of conflict as a lesser crime and a problem too difficult or too uncomfortable for societies to address " Jolie added.

Stoltenberg explained that NATO must "shine a bright light on these darkest of crimes " and urged for increased awareness on the matter.

Jolie who in 16 years in the field focusing on humanitarian help to women in conflict zones had listened to the plight of women men girls and boys who were victims of sexual violence.

She would later meet with military advisors and commanders to discuss how they can work together addressing training of NATO soldiers and strengthening existing training on combating sexual violence.

--IANS
qd/