Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on women of ongoing conflict in South Sudan.

Accurate assessments are hard to come by, due to the limitations of access. However, we remain deeply concerned by the impact on women of the ongoing conflict. Figures provided by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) show that 55% of those who have fled to neighbouring countries since December 2013 have been female. In addition, according to various humanitarian Gender-Based Violence (GBV) assessments, women and girls in the conflict-affected areas have experienced multiple forms of GBV. Particularly disturbingly, the latest Human Rights Report published by the UN Mission in South Sudan on 30 June also reported extensive testimony of rape in conflict areas, particularly in Unity State, where at least 79 women are believed to have been subjected to sexual violence. I highlighted my deep concern at these reports on social media. Together with its international partners, including the UN, US, EU and Norway, the UK continues to urge the parties to negotiate a resolution to the conflict.