Australia is a stable, democratic and culturally diverse nation with a highly skilled workforce and one of the strongest performing economies in the world.
We appreciate the initiative taken by the African Group to find a way forward to address the Third Committee’s workload which has significantly increased over recent years.
Our concerns to strengthen language on this important issue were not heard or addressed, and we find the exclusion of sexual and reproductive health-care services unacceptable.
The Rome Statute was one of the first international treaties to extensively address conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence as crimes against humanity, war crimes and, in some instances, genocide.
We reiterate our support to the United Nations African Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, and were pleased to engage constructively in the course of negotiations.
We take this opportunity to reaffirm our strong support for this resolution, and we welcome the pen holder’s choice to focus on eliminating violence against all women and girls in the digital environment this year.
