By Akol Madut Ngong
National Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare is in consultation on the possible domestication of model legislative provisions on conflict related to sexual violence in the country.
The gender ministry in collaboration with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has organized a two-day session on how to tame model lawmaking provision related to SGBV.
The workshop involves civil societies, lawyers, humanitarian to introduce a tool called the model legislative provision and guidance on conflict related sexual violence in the young nation.
Addressing the session, the National Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare, Ayah Benjamin Warille said laws regarding women remain dormant in the State.
“We are aware that strengthening the rule of law and the capacity provision are intended to legislatures, practitioners as prosecutors being implementing a robust legal and procedural framework rely with international norm and obligation,” the minister said.
She said that sexually related violence is clear and categorical, stating that the model domestication articulated that the perpetrator will be accountable to the acts.
She further said the national legislation provides a comprehensive legal framework to all form of sexual violent as a crime and protect all individual who may fall victim.
The bill is to reform and consolidate the law related to gender based violent including domestic violence, intimate partner violent, sexual violence and offences, assault, harassment, harmful customary practices and child protection.
It aimed at providing protection of victims of gender-based violence’s court, and establishing the one stop Centre known as family protection Centre.
Meanwhile, Senior Women Protection Advisor of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) Sheila B. Keetharuth said the document was adopted last year for the celebration of the 19th of June, which is the International Day for Conflict Related Sexual Violent in the world.
“Lastly when it’s came out before we should have agreed to bring this legislative, parliamentarian, civil society group can have a look at those of what is contain and how to ensure that, it inform law so that people in South Sudan can see some of the new language in term of persecution of conflict related sexual violent and accountability for those who committed conflict related sexual violent” the UNMISS’ representative said.
She said the consultation focused more at laws, legislations, stating that if there is a space for more legislation in South Sudan or not, the document should discuss.
In addition, she said that when people talk about conflict related sexual violent, they are talking about sexual violence which has links to the conflict.
However, one of the participant Josephine Bakita representing CRS said the workshop is vital for them, but however said it trick them as female in the society, noting that Gender Base Violence (GBV) are currently taking place in the country.
She said that sexual related violence makes a lot of things, adding that if people come together as a community and discuss the main issue and cause of sexual related conflict, it can be eliminated.
“These of force marriage, sexual exploitation, abduction, intimate personal violent these are very point if we come together and eliminates those issue as community and I’m calling upon the authorities to enact the law,” she said.
Another participant, a legal officer representing South Sudan law reform commission, Jombee Edward Marlee said the workshop is actually very important because its help them learn certain laws which are not covered in their legal framework.
He said that by having sexual gender base violent laws, the country would be able to cover up certain gap of laws which is not within South Sudan legal framework.
“By attaining this workshop, I have actually gain inside and I believe by building this bill up, it will cover a very important aspect of the laws which is not cover and I have captured the aspects of crime related to sexual gender base violent which are very serious crimes being committed,” he said.
More cases do happen in our community some men can rape a woman and so doing, it is not consider that is a crime and I think by incriminating rape, it would a very important step forward to sub-guard our women and children. The world is growing, and everybody is growing up and by so doing, South Sudan is a member of many of the International convention, and being a part of a member, it feel important that these laws are incorporated into its legal framework such that it should be able to safeguard its citizen.