Adv. Yael Vias Gvirsman’s Keynote at Paris Launch of Guiding Principles on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence (CRSV)
- yulinchou97
- Nov 24
- 6 min read
Updated: Nov 26
Speech – Launch of the Civil Society Guiding Principles on CRSV
I would like to acknowledge everyone present today—being here in the same room is already an act of courage to be here today. Every person here on this podium says the same thing - we are united to say something that is neither left nor right, but something that has to do with humanity.
It is an honour to address this multi-stakeholder audience: politicians and legislators, judges and prosecutors, lawyers, women’s NGOs, educators, civil society, and policymakers—all brought unapologetically together for a shared purpose.
To address conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) effectively, we must bring all stakeholders to the same table: States, Non-State Actors (including NSAGs and corporate entities), victims and survivors, educators, justice practitioners, and civil society. Only through collective engagement can we transform outrage into accountability and impunity into prevention.
(10-minute keynote – final separated version)
Part I – The Guiding Principles on CRS
Th
ank you.
Part I – The Guiding Principles Addressing and Preventing Sexual Violence amounting to International Crimes: War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity, Genocide
Today we present the Civil Society Guiding Principles on Addressing and Preventing Sexual Violence Amounting to International Crimes—the Guiding Principles on CRSV.
We are proud to state that today we have partner NGOs and international experts onboard, and we hope to see the circle expand to create an inclusive dialogue for effective implementation based on these Guiding Principles.
Inspirations for the Guiding Principles
Two models inspired the initial concept for these Guiding Principles:
UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights – applying the logic of shared responsibility across all actors.
Emergency Response Model – Preparedness, Response, and Aftermath / Long-Term Impact. Effective prevention, justice, and recovery must all be addressed together.
Accordingly, the Principles rest on three core pillars:
Pillar I – State Obligations
States must prevent, investigate, and prosecute sexual violence amounting to international crimes and repair the harm caused. This includes:
National Action Plans
Training for investigators and judges
Survivor-centered prosecutions
Reparations
Guarantees of non-recurrence
Pillar II – Non-State Actor Obligations
Non-State Armed Groups, Private Military Companies, and corporate entities must:
Adopt Codes of Conduct that expunge sexual violence from ideology, method, and practice (as Geneva Call and ICoCA have begun to model)
Conduct human-rights due diligence to prevent complicity in sexual violence across their operations and supply chains
Pillar III – Victims’ Rights and Empowerment
At the heart of the framework are victims and survivors—women, men, girls, boys, and children born of CRSV, often left invisible. They have the right to:
Truth
Justice
Reparations
Guarantees of non-recurrence
Their participation must shape every response phase.
Themes for Future Dialogue
In each pillar, the following themes have been identified for further dialogue and focus:
CRSV committed by Non-State Armed Groups (NSAGs) as part of an ideology
Digital space: disseminating atrocities (CRSV) and using technology as a tool for accountability
Children born of CRSV
Corporate responsibility / Private Military Companies
Training first responders at the crime scene
Global Consultations and Research
These Guiding Principles are the result of a full year of global consultations and research, from June 2024 to June 2025, culminating in dialogues at the UN Commission on the Status of Women Summit in New York (March 2025).
We stood on the shoulders of giants—Dr. Denis Mukwege, Prof. Catherine MacKinnon, and Nadia Murad—whose decades of work have defined the global understanding of sexual violence as both an international crime and a threat to peace and security.
The consultations involved international experts and were inspired by victims in:
Iraq (Yazidi community)
Colombia
Eritrea
Sudan
Democratic Republic of Congo
Ukraine
Syria’s Druze community in Suweida
Former Yugoslavia
The Urgent Context
In July 2025, the UN Secretary-General’s Annual Report on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence noted a continued and alarming rise in CRSV worldwide. The report drew a line from Nuremberg, eighty years ago this November, through Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, the DRC, Colombia, Iraq, and Syria, and across a continuum of UN Security Council resolutions, the most recent dating 2024 (on counterterrorism and sexual violence), affirming that sexual violence amounting to international crimes is a threat to peace and security.
Contributions of International Criminal Law
International Criminal Law can contribute to enhancing domestic legislation in addressing CRSV and other international core crimes in three main areas:
Doctrines of accountability – Models include Joint Criminal Enterprise (JCE), Common Plan (ICC), and Conspiracy (Nuremberg), illustrating how responsibility evolves.
Modes of liability – Determining which acts trigger responsibility and by whom
Definition of elements of the crimes
The conclusion is clear: CRSV is on the rise.
While accountability has become the expected norm since Yugoslavia, impunity remains the lived reality for tens of thousands of survivors.
Acknowledgements
We gratefully acknowledge the experts who helped shape this process:
Agathe Sarfati, consultant for O7J and principal author of the UN CTED report Counter-Terrorism and Sexual Violence (2023)
Ms. Paula Silva (Colombia), International Center for the Treatment of Violence (CIV) — Founding Member, formerly with Colombia’s Special Jurisdiction for Peace
Céline Bardet, Founder, We Are Not Weapons Of War (WWOW),
Iryna Kapalkina, Lawyer, Ukrainian Legal Advisory Group
Several anonymous contributors
With the support of ELNET and the Global Coalition, today in Paris, we are launching an inclusive global dialogue to refine, enrich, and implement these principles.
Judicial Momentum
We launch this process at a moment of judicial momentum: on November 12, here in Paris, the Lumbala case will open before the Tribunal Judiciaire, including charges for sexual violence committed in the DRC, brought by NGOs and attorneys representing victims, present here today.
This case reminds us that universal jurisdiction is not theoretical—it is a living instrument of justice.
Join Us by endorsing the Guiding Principles and the participate in Judicial
Dialogue!
If you or your organization would like to endorse the Guiding Principles to help spread knowledge and raise awareness about preventing CRSV, and actively engage in the 2025–26 Judicial Dialogue through one of its thematic or regional working groups, we warmly invite you to get involved.
Your participation will help advance justice, accountability, and the prevention of CRSV.
(password to the sign-up page: CRSV2025)
Part II – October 7 Justice Without Borders (O7J)
On October 7, 2023, at 6:29 a.m., after twenty years working on accountability for international crimes—from Rwanda to Ukraine—I woke up to an emergency at home. Five Palestinian militias had opened the doors of hell and committed unfathomable atrocities against a civilian population.
In those first days, volunteers searching for missing persons reached out through a human-rights lawyer. They were desperate and unheard. By October 12, I represented 37 victims from six crime bases.
That was the beginning of October 7 Justice Without Borders (O7J), a Non-Profit I founded to make our actions sustainable, with a dedicated team and partners worldwide.
Today, we represent over 400 victims, leading impact litigation for accountability of perpetrators and aiders & abettors across jurisdictions—in Germany, The Hague, France, the U.S., Israel, and beyond. Together with our civil-litigation partners, 1,500 more victims are engaged.
As early as October 15, 2023, we worked directly with international prosecutors to help secure the first international arrest warrants, confirming that the October 7 attacks included acts of torture, extermination, murder, rape, and sexual violence amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Among the victims and survivors we represent is Shani Louk (z”l), whose body was paraded into Gaza as a ‘trophy of war.’ It is a life privilege to represent Shani’s family.
The harm is triple:
The attack
The denial
The unprecedented exposure, where the private becomes public and is instrumentalized for political agendas
Let justice be done. Let it be done serenely.
We also represent her boyfriend Orion’s family. During my trip to Europe, I will meet with his family to return his belongings—kept for two years by the "Nova Tribe" and now returned for some consolation.
Do we represent other victims of sexual violence committed on or since October 7? Yes. Although we do not know all of them, we have indications and are cross-referencing sources.
This is one of the more complex situations I have represented—not because it is impossible to find out—but because the harm is multilayered: one family includes survivors, released hostages, and murdered individuals, and in most cases is displaced.
We are driven by one conviction: justice is not a privilege, but a right, and accountability for atrocity crimes is possible when courage meets law.
Judicial Panel
It is my privilege to open the next segment of this evening: our panel discussion, “Impunity or Accountability: Cross-Continental Experiences.”
We are honored to begin with Judge Aurélie Devos, followed by distinguished speakers sharing five-minute case studies before an open exchange.
Schedule:
14:55 – Mme Isabelle Rome: opening remarks (video)
15:00–15:15 – Mme Aurelia Devos: keynote on prosecuting sexual violence as international crimes
15:15–15:25 – Att Yael Vias Gvirsman: presentation of the Civil Society Guiding Principles on CRSV and panel introduction
15:30–16:25 – Panel: Case Studies & Discussion
Panel Questions:
Accomplishments – successes in investigation and prosecution models; notable features (2.5 minutes each)
Challenges – inherent challenges in bringing accountability, including jurisdictional issues (2.5 minutes each)
Beyond Criminal Justice – the role of victims, prevention measures, and effective accountability in national or international jurisdictions (2.5 minutes each)
Thank you!
I would like to acknowledge the persons present, it is already an act of courage to be
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