PARLIAMENTARY EARLY DAY MOTION
WOMEN REFUGEES AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE (26 January 1993)

That this House calls on the Government to reassess its policy on refugee assistance with regard to women refugees, in the light of the particularly widespread torture and sexual violence they have suffered in the Bosnian conflict; and urges the Government to press for the UN Convention relating to the status of refugees to be amended to define women as a social group facing persecution resulting from gender-based discrimination, violence, sexual exploitation and traditional practices harmful to women, to involve women in the planning of repatriation, to offer sensitive counselling for victims of sexual torture, to offer access to this country for women refugees who want to have abortions, and to provide leadership positions for women with regard to food distribution and daily living decisions within the refugee camps.

Sponsored by:
Helen Jackson (Labour)