Against the backdrop of widespread sexual violence against Rohingya women and girls, the United Kingdom has recently deployed experts to provide support on investigating and documenting these abhorrent crimes. They will look at the extent of reported incidents of sexual violence, services being provided to survivors and their families, identify gaps in service provision and make recommendations for the UK government. Frances E O Abebreseh, senior press officer of the media office of the communication directorate under the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) revealed this in an email communication in response to a query from The Independent. The FCO has a specialised team named Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) set up in 2012 which gathers evidence of sexual violence in conflict zones. And, the two experts who have been deployed in Bangladesh belong to the team that has previously worked in different conflict zones.

The deployment took place following a letter written to the FCO by former UK Foreign Secretary William Hague, who took the initiative to set up the team.

The head of the PSVI recently visited Bangladesh with United Nations secretary-general’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict Pramila Patten and met survivors, service providers and government officials.

The deployed civilian experts to Bangladesh will conduct a needs assessment of the extent of reported sexual violence and service provision. They are experts in gender issues and criminal law, including sexual violence in conflict and will look at the extent of reported

incidents of sexual violence, services being provided to survivors and their families and identify gaps in service provision. Part of the assessment will be a deep dive on investigation and documentation of sexual violence. The harrowing reports of mass rape and sexual violence against the Rohingya community people in Burma are deeply disturbing, according to UK prime minister’s special representative on preventing sexual violence in conflict Lord Ahmad.

“As well as rape, gang rape, invasive body searches, and murder, the reports suggest that evidence of these crimes is being deliberately destroyed to stop those responsible being brought to justice. These abuses are a clear human rights violation and must cease immediately,” he said.

Pramila Patten told a special session at the human rights council on December 5, “The stories heard from the Rohingya were heart-breaking and simply unimaginable, acts of unmitigated brutality against women and girls. Those acts were not random, and included rape, gang rape by multiple soldiers, forced nudity and sexual slavery and captivity by the military.”

“Those reported patterns of systematic sexual violence were being used as a tool of dehumanisation and collective punishment,” she said.

“Some women reported witnessing acts of extreme brutality, and told of women and girls being tied to a rock or a tree with multiple soldiers raping them to death,” said Patten.  There were women who told of their babies taken away and thrown in fires, while the women themselves were being gang raped, she said.

UK FCO Minister for Asia Mark Field described the allegations extremely serious and expressed his country’s determination to hold the perpetrators to account.