Category Archives: Sexual violence

‘Deeply alarming’: sevenfold increase in sexual attacks at Darién Gap, says Médecins Sans Frontières

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More than half a million people made treacherous, weeklong trek in 2023, facing horrors including mass rapes by armed bandits

A sevenfold increase in sexual attacks against people crossing the Darién Gap is compounding the misery for people trekking one of the world’s most dangerous and underreported border crossings, said Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

Complete impunity for armed gangs in the lawless stretch of jungle that links South and Central America meant one person became a victim of sexual violence every three and a half hours in December, the overstretched medical organisation said.

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UN condemnation of sexual violence by Hamas ‘too little, too late’, says Israel

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Israel says comments by Unicef chief were insufficient and came only as a result of international pressure

Israel has criticised the head of the United Nations children’s agency after she condemned acts of sexual violence committed against women during Hamas’s deadly assault on Israel on 7 October, as attention has focused on rapes and other atrocities in recent days.

Israel said the comments by Catherine Russell, the executive director of Unicef, were insufficient and were issued only as a result of international pressure.

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Rapists and kidnappers increasingly targeting migrants crossing Darién Gap

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As record numbers make the perilous journey between Colombia and Panama, Médecins Sans Frontières is treating far more survivors of sexual violence, including children

Armed bandits are exploiting the record number of people crossing the Darién Gap – a 100km stretch of jungle connecting Colombia and Panama – to kidnap and rape desperate migrants, according to Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

The organisation said it treated 397 survivors of sexual violence this year – many of them children – once they safely reached Panama. There have been reports of “group rapes in tents set up for that purpose in the mountainous rainforest and swampland”.

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Allegations of extensive sexual abuse at Kenyan offsetting project used by Shell and Netflix

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NGOs report allegations of abuse and harassment at Kasigau Corridor conservation project in southern Kenya over 12 years

Male staff at a leading Kenyan carbon-offsetting project used by Netflix, Shell and other large companies have been accused of extensive sexual abuse and harassment over more than a decade, following an investigation by two NGOs.

The Kasigau Corridor conservation project in southern Kenya, operated by the California-based firm Wildlife Works, generates carbon credits by protecting dryland forests at risk of being destroyed in key elephant, lion and wildlife habitats west of Mombasa. The scheme was the first ever forest protection scheme approved by Verra, the world’s leading certifier of carbon offsets, and has also been accredited for its biodiversity and community benefits, probably generating millions of dollars in revenue in carbon-credit sales.

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Threats against rape victim, 10, lay bare Bolivia’s culture of sexual violence

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Supporters of alleged rapist, girl’s 39-year-old headmaster, stormed police station in effort to prevent arrest

The ombudsman’s office in Bolivia has condemned threats against a 10-year-old rape victim and her family after teachers and school staff tried to prevent the arrest of the alleged rapist, a 39-year-old headmaster, by trying to invade a local police station and scuffling with police officers.

Videos posted on social media show the group gathered outside the police station, trying to pressure the prosecutor and judge to release the alleged perpetrator.

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Climate crisis is ‘not gender neutral’: UN calls for more policy focus on women

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Only a third of countries with climate crisis plans include access to sexual, maternal and newborn health services, UNFPA report finds

Only a third of countries include sexual and reproductive health in their national plans to tackle the climate crisis, the UN has warned.

Of the 119 countries that have published plans, only 38 include access to contraception, maternal and newborn health services and just 15 make any reference to violence against women, according to a report published by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and Queen Mary University of London on Tuesday.

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Mexican city of Chihuahua bans misogynist lyrics in live music venues

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Fines of up to £55,000 could be imposed on musicians who sing songs deemed to promote violence against women

Authorities in the north-western Mexican state of Chihuahua have banned artists from singing misogynist lyrics in live music venues.

Chihuahua, the capital city of the state, which borders the US, has passed a measure to prohibit musicians from performing songs that promote violence against women.

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Modi speaks out after video of sexual assault on women in Manipur emerges

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Indian PM had been criticised for failing to talk about deadly ethnic conflict taking place in north-eastern state

The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, has broken his months-long silence on the deadly ethnic conflict raging in the state of Manipur after a video emerged of women being stripped naked, paraded and assaulted before it is alleged they were gang raped.

Outrage erupted across India after footage was circulated from Manipur of two women from the minority Kuki tribe being forcibly stripped naked by a mob of the majority Meitei tribal group who can be heard shouting: “If you don’t take off your clothes, we’ll kill you.” The women are then publicly groped and dragged to a field, where it is alleged they were gang raped.

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Sexual violence is junta’s ‘modus operandi’, Myanmar activist tells UN

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People are united to end military dictatorship but international support is needed, Naw Hser Hser says

The crisis in Myanmar should be referred to the international criminal court for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including widespread sexual violence, an open session at the UN security council will be told.

Naw Hser Hser, the first Myanmar human rights defender to brief council members in an open session since the 2021 coup, will also call for greater action to cut crucial supplies of arms and finances to the military junta.

In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support for rape and sexual abuse on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html

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Urgent action needed to protect ‘dying’ Kenyan domestic workers in Gulf, say rights groups

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Deaths and alleged abuse of Kenyan women in Saudi Arabia fuels demands for Nairobi to act on human rights

Rights groups have expressed concern that not enough has been done to address the alleged mistreatment of domestic workers in Gulf states, such as Saudi Arabia, after the Kenyan government moved to secure work opportunities abroad for its citizens.

“This is a matter of grave public interest,” said John Mwariri, a lawyer at Kituo cha Sheria, a legal aid organisation. “Many of our Kenyan citizens have been abused and are dying there. There is an urgent need for protections.”

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Yemeni activist who revealed sexual abuse by Houthis ‘being held by Saudi intelligence’

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Samira al-Houri disappeared after allegations that claims of female prisoners being raped were embellished

A prominent Yemeni human rights activist who revealed sexual abuse by Houthis in the country’s jails has been detained for more than a year by Saudi intelligence and her whereabouts is unknown, her friends have claimed.

The claim about Samira al-Houri’s disappearance has been made by Ali Albukhaiti, a prominent Yemeni politician and writer, who told the Guardian he decided to go public after he felt all private diplomatic avenues to secure her release had been exhausted. Albukhaiti drew parallels with the case of Jamal Khashoggi, the murdered Saudi journalist and dissident, saying although he had no evidence about her fate he feared for her safety.

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Vulnerable UK women forced into ‘sex for rent’ by cost of living crisis

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Some women are turning to escort work to meet basic housing costs, charities warn

Women are increasingly being forced to engage in “survival sex” because of the cost of living crisis amid worsening conditions for Britain’s most vulnerable.

Charities warn rising costs paired with years of underfunding mean women, including those with trauma and mental health issues, are having to turn to sex in exchange for housing or to meet other basic needs.

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Spanish PM apologises for loophole in new sexual consent law

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Pedro Sánchez asks victims for forgiveness after change allows some offenders to reduce sentences

Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, has apologised to victims for a loophole in a landmark new law that was intended to toughen penalties for sexual crimes but has allowed some convicted offenders to reduce their sentences.

The legislation, popularly known as the “only yes means yes” law, came into effect last October. It overhauled the criminal code by making sexual consent – or lack of it – key in determining assault cases, in an effort to define all non-consensual sex as rape.

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Latest ABS data shows 22% of women have been exposed to sexual violence

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About 42% of men reported experiencing physical violence since the age of 15, report finds

The Australian Bureau of Statistics released its latest personal safety data on Wednesday, showing an estimated 8 million Australians have experienced violence since the age of 15.

One in five Australian women have experienced sexual violence and stalking in their lifetime, the new data showed.

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Yazidi women kept as slaves by IS appeal to UN to intervene in their fight for compensation

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Lawyers demand support from Australia for five victims of Khaled Sharrouf in test case for international law on torture survivors

Five Yazidi women held as slaves by an Islamic State fighter are appealing to the UN to intervene in their case for compensation in a move lawyers hope will help fix a “lawless” global system that is failing torture survivors.

The women, captured in Iraq in 2014, were taken to Syria as slaves by IS fighters, including the Australian citizen Khaled Sharrouf, who was pictured standing next to his young son holding a severed human head.

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Tigray rebels tortured and killed civilians in renewed fighting, survivors claim

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Witnesses claim the attacks in Amhara region last month were carried out on those the TPLF suspected of supporting Ethiopian federal forces

Tigrayan rebel forces have killed dozens of civilians during their latest occupation of a town in the Amhara region, survivors claim, after fighting resumed last month in the northern area of Ethiopia.

The alleged killings took place in the town of Kobo, located along the highway to the capital, Addis Ababa. Between 13-15 September, Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) fighters shot dead unarmed civilians they suspected of supporting federal forces and local militias, survivors have told the Guardian.

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South African police arrest more than 120 after gang-rape of eight women

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Dozens of zama-zamas – illegal miners from other countries – now being held in crime crackdown following music video shoot attack

Dozens of men detained after the alleged gang-rape of eight women on a music video shoot in South Africa are expected back in court on Wednesday as police made more arrests of artisanal miners blamed by local people for widespread violence.

The arrests on Tuesday near Krugersdorp, a city north-west of Johannesburg, bring the total number of people detained since the attack to more than 120.

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Rape used ‘systematically’ during Lebanon’s civil war, report finds

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Levels of torture and sexual violence used by combatants against women and girls during the 15-year conflict shocked investigators

The full scale of the rape, torture and killing of women and girls during Lebanon’s civil war has been revealed after survivors were interviewed about their experiences for the first time in over 30 years.

Testimonies gathered by the human rights organisation Legal Action Worldwide (LAW), documented in a new report, provide evidence of systematic violence against Lebanese and Palestinian women and girls by government forces and militias during the 15-year war, which began in 1975. The conflict saw more than 100,000 people killed and 1 million displaced.

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Nepali woman’s account of rape prompts wave of protest over laws

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Calls grow for repeal of statute of limitations and widening of definition of rape after former model makes allegations on TikTok

A young woman’s account on TikTok of being drugged, raped and then blackmailed by a beauty pageant organiser when she was 16 years old has provoked outrage in Nepal and prompted calls to reform the country’s “grossly inadequate” rape laws.

In one of a series of videos, which together have been viewed millions of times, the former model and child actor broke down in tears as she talked about Nepal’s statute of limitations that dictates survivors must report cases of rape within one year of the offence being committed.

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Médecins Sans Frontières apologises for using images of child rape survivor

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Medical charity’s president calls publication of controversial photographs ‘a mistake’ and says guidelines will be tightened

The international president of Médecins Sans Frontières has apologised for publishing photographs of a teenage rape survivor from the Democratic Republic of the Congo on its website, following criticism that the images were unethical and racist.

Dr Christos Christou also announced that the medical charity had tightened its guidelines on photographing vulnerable minors, such as survivors of sexual abuse, requiring that they should not be identified visually or by name.

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