The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) invites you to join to the event “Targeting vulnerable religious communities through sexual violence and exploitation of women”, to be held online on Wednesday 30thJune 2021 from 11:00 to 12:45 (CEST), together with Aid to the Church in Need (EU office).
(Credit: ACN/COMECE)
Jihadist terrorism has shifted the focus of its operations to sub-Saharan and Indian Africa, and to the regions of Asia bordering the equator, while continuing its presence in the Middle East.
This phenomenon has also a dimension that affects women as a group exposed to sexual violence, exploitation, and enslavement. In many cases, these women belong to vulnerable religious communities. This is not just exploitation of women, but an attack on the entire community to which they belong.
This online event wants to delve into the reality experienced by women from vulnerable religious communities, and the drama they suffer when they are victims of such crimes, which are considered crimes against humanity by Article 7 of the International Criminal Court’s Statute.
Speakers will include Eamon Gilmore, EU Special Representatives for Human Rights, and experts from Nigeria, Syria and Pakistan working on the ground with victims of sexual violence and exploitation.
