Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you so much. This is a very important question. Sir, you raised the issue of the children of rape and what they are facing now in Rwanda, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and in Croatia. Really it's terrible. Many of these children are devastated. They realize that their fathers

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes. I agree 100% that this is a good way, and I think this is the right way. We have lots of feminist groups. We have lots of women's organizations, and they have dealt before with refugees from different parts of the world, and they do a very good job.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It's not in religion. In fact, it's in the society, and it's in the traditions of the people. When we talk about Islam and Muslims, we have to differentiate between Islamic, which relates to the Islamic primary sources law...and when we say “Muslims” we talk about Muslims' behavi

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Muslim religion and Sharia law? Sharia law is about the Muslim religion.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Many of them are members of the international community. All of the major players are members in the council. I don't know exactly the number, but it's huge.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  No, it's not Iran.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  The United Nations is a great organization but it needs reform regarding many treaties, particularly the Rome Statute. The member states have a chance every three or four years to sit, to decide, to vote, and to change, add, modify, and reform. This could not be done this way. It

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes, but this is part of it. I think these families.... I appeal again to the Government of Canada to open the doors, particularly to the victims of sexual violence—men and women. Because here in Canada, or in the western countries particularly, they can come forward, they can

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you for that. Let me first of all make a little comment on your first statement. We know that starts maybe with the documented history, or even before, but it was used as collateral damage, as they consider it, or it was used as a pleasure for the combatants, or a reward f

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It's very difficult. It's really difficult because this kind of crime.... This is why I am appealing to the victims of sexual violence just to forget. It's difficult to forget, but I ask them just to think of themselves in a way that they were combatants or they were victims of a

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes. Thank you, sir. As I mentioned to you, when war erupts, the major victim is the truth, especially when it comes to sexual violence. There's crime in that region, because of the traditions, because of their mentality, because of maybe religious education. It's really difficu

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  In fact, as I discussed several times, we are here in the west and when we'd like to interfere we ask what is our interest to interfere, but we never ask ourselves what we could lose if we don't interfere. The war started in Syria peacefully, as I mentioned. There were demonstra

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  In fact, when war erupts, the main victim is the truth. It's difficult to get at exactly what is going on. Every part of the conflict has its statistics and ways. But I think it is different in Syria. In the former Yugoslavia it was ethnic and religious problems in the early 1990

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I think the best thing to do is to work for reform of the international institutions. In a recent interview with A Contrario, I mentioned that the Rome Statute itself needs to be reformed. Under article 13(b) cases should be taken from the Security Council referral and taken to t

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair, for the opportunity to appear before you today to testify on one of the most timely and critical issues facing us, sexual violence as a weapon of war in the ongoing Syrian conflict. It's timely, because the international community is failing in its obligati