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Minorities in situations of humanitarian crises 2016, para. 76

Paragraph text: Owing to multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, specific challenges face minority women and girls affected by humanitarian crises. According to the General Recommendation on women in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict situations of the Committee for the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (see CEDAW/C/GC/30, para. 36), during and after conflict specific groups of women, including, inter alia, internally displaced and refugee women, women of diverse caste, ethnic, national or religious identities, or of other minorities, are at a particular risk of violence, especially sexual violence. These groups of women "are often attacked as symbolic representatives of their community". The Committee has further noted that stateless women and girls face heightened risk of abuse during conflict, owing to, among other factors, their minority status (ibid, para. 60). Minority women may be particularly at risk of sexual and gender-based violence and other forms of violence, including slavery and trafficking. The Special Rapporteur was deeply troubled and saddened when she listened to the testimonies of Yezidi women in Iraq of sexual and gender-based violence committed against them by Daesh, which acts must be fully investigated and their perpetrators prosecuted.

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Paragraph text: This means that the humanitarian system needs to make a concerted effort to ensure that their responses meet people who are hard to reach and address the specific needs of minority communities. Efforts need to take into account the vulnerability of minorities to displacement and multiple forms of discrimination during crises, as well as the specific challenges facing minorities affected by crises owing to their very situation as minorities, including through paying particular attention to a range of issues, notably, security and safety; documentation; standard of living; livelihood and employment; education; housing, land and property issues and the particular status of minority women and girls. Attention also needs to be paid to those most vulnerable within minority communities, including women, older persons, persons with disabilities, and youth among others.

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Paragraph text: Multiple or intersectional discrimination may increase vulnerability to violence. Minority women and girls are particularly affected by violence, targeted for rape and other forms of sexual violence, torture and killings because of their ethnic or religious identity and their gender. In 2011, the Forum on Minority Issues focused on the rights of minority women and girls and, in its recommendations, highlighted the need for peacekeeping operations and national security forces in regions affected by conflict to pay particular attention to minority women and girls, including through training of staff and police and military personnel on the needs and vulnerability of minority women and girls. Minority women should be included in processes of conflict settlement and post-conflict reconstruction.

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