Islamic Relief has called for more focus to end sexual and gender-based violence

At a high profile conference in Norway, Islamic Relief has called for more focus on using faith-sensitive approaches to end sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).

The Oslo conference is the first in a series of high-level events to be held this year to address SGBV in humanitarian crises, which has wide-ranging negative consequences for survivors and their communities.

“Faith is often seen to be part of the problem, but at Islamic Relief we believe it must be part of the solution. When societies and states break down, faith is sometimes the only thing people have left. It can unite people, providing a sense of belonging, and faith leaders can be agents for creating change,” said Islamic Relief CEO Naser Haghamed, addressing the conference.

Islamic Relief’s efforts to prevent sexual violence and forced marriages that are, tragically, so common during crises include mobilising faith leaders to speak out against SGBV.

The organization also announced the launch of the Islamic Declaration on Gender Justice.

“It is the first Islamic call to action that will secure pledges from dozens of organisations on addressing discrimination and violence against women and girls, including during humanitarian crises.

“Working together with many of you here today – such as colleagues from UNFPA and IFRC – who have endorsed the Declaration, we will commit to increasing our focus on protection in emergency and disaster situations. We will ensure that religion is no longer used as a cover for violence but becomes a powerful tool to address it.”

The two-day conference was hosted by Norway, Iraq, Somalia, United Arab Emirates, UN OCHA, UNFPA, ICRC, and other partners.

Original source: Islamic Relief
Published on 24 May 2019