Madam President,

The Chinese delegation wishes to thank Nigeria for the initiative of organizing today's open debate. I wish to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Special Representative Bangura for their briefings. We also listened carefully to the statement just made by the representative of the non-governmental organization.

In recent years, thanks to the joint efforts of the United Nations and the international community, countries in conflict have achieved substantial progress in preventing fighting sexual violence and supporting the rights of women in conflict. However, in many armed conflicts in today's world, vulnerable groups, including women, continue to bear the brunt of the consequences of war. The practice remains rampant where the threat of violence has been used as a method of war. That constitutes not only a serious affront to the rights and dignity of women, but also flagrant challenge to the peaceful reconstruction efforts of the countries concerned and shocks the human conscience; it therefore should be fought by the international community in a concerted manner.

China condemns and opposes all violence against civilians in armed conflict, including sexual violence. We call for the comprehensive implementation of the Councils resolutions and urge the parties to conflict to respect international human rights law and relevant international law, immediately stop all sexual violence and take concrete actions to protect the security and rights of vulnerable groups, including women and children.

I would now like to stress the following three points.

First, the fight against sexual violence and armed conflict should depend mainly on the efforts of the affected countries. Relevant national Governments bear the primary responsibility for implementing Council resolutions and fighting sexual violence in conflict. The international community, including the United Nations, should fully respect the sovereignty and will of the affected countries. They should focus on helping with the capacity-building of those countries and resolve the financing and technical difficulties they encounter.

It is important to put into practice the principles referred to in the report of the Secretary-General (S/2014/181), namely, national ownership, national leadership and national responsibility. It is also important to encourage and support the efforts carried out by the affected countries in prevention and resolution of issues arising from sexual violence in armed conflict.

Secondly, in addressing issues involving women and peace and security, including sexual violence, the relevant organs of the United Nations should respect the division of labour and work in a concerted manner. As the primary organ for the maintenance of international peace and security, the Security Council should focus on conflict prevention, peacekeeping and post-conflict peacebuilding so as to create an enabling political and security environment for reducing and eliminating sexual violence in armed conflict. The General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council, the Human Rights Council and UN-Women should each leverage its advantage and work closely with the Council so as to create synergy. The Council should strictly abide by its relevant mandate in dealing with sexual violence and avoid stepping into areas of responsibility enjoyed by other organs. United Nations missions should also observe Council mandates in carrying out security sector reform and post-conflict peacebuilding. It is important to pay special attention to strengthening communication and cooperation with the countries concerned.

Thirdly, special attention should be given to addressing the root causes of sexual violence in armed conflict. To prevent and curb sexual violence in armed conflict, punishment and monitoring have to be strengthened. It is also important to tackle the root causes that are the breeding ground for conflicts. It is important to promote the overall economic and social development of the countries concerned and maintain political security and stability to enhance the status of women and achieve women's empowerment. The international community should scale up its assistance to women's development in those countries.

Thank you, Madam President.