I N T E G R AT I N G A G E N D E R P E R S P E C T I V E I N T O H U M A N R I G H T S I N V E S T I G AT I O N S • G U I D A N C E A N D P R A C T I C E III In humanitarian contexts and fragile settings, the risk of dying in pregnancy or childbirth is twice as high as the maternal death rate in non-fragile settings. Services available in humanitarian contexts, including IDP settlements, may fall short of meeting the needs of women and adolescent girls, including life-saving emergency obstetric care. Protection mechanisms for victims and survivors of sexual violence, especially access to psychosocial support and sexual and reproductive health services, may not be available. mental health, education, work, housing and participation in public life.54 GBV in conflict/ crisis situations may also result in a vast range of physical and psychological consequences for victims and survivors, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), injuries and disabilities and an increased risk of HIV infection, as well as unwanted pregnancies. The CEDAW Committee has stated that there is a strong correlation between GBV and HIV, including the deliberate transmission of HIV, used as a weapon of war, through rape.55 Reports also indicate that sexual violence has been used during conflict as a strategic tool of war to humiliate the enemy, obtain information and pressure suspects to step forward.56 Investigation teams should document and analyse the extent to which GBV has contributed to additional violations or abuses of human rights, including by asking relevant questions of the victims and survivors, their relatives, as well as other sources, such as medical practitioners and humanitarian workers providing aid and support, including psychosocial support, to victims and survivors. Questions could relate to the consequences and subsequent impacts of the violations on the victims, including beyond the specific physical consequences. For example, questions might be asked about the possible changes that have occurred after the violations in relation to victims’ general well-being and morale, including their health, sleep and anxiety, or about the impact This can be due to limited funding as well as lack of access to or restrictions imposed on humanitarian actors that prevent delivery of these services. In some contexts, policy barriers also prevent health personnel from providing a complete range of contraceptives. Without access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services, including prenatal, postnatal and delivery care, access to safe abortion and contraceptive options, the lives of many women and girls living in humanitarian contexts are at considerable risk. It is critical that investigation teams effectively reflect the differentiated impact and consequences that forced displacement can have on women and girls. These resulting violations of their rights would never have taken place if they had not had to flee from violence or conflict and should be considered an integral part of the analysis of the gender impact of the violations. For example, sexual harassment of women’s rights defenders by state and non-state actors undermines women’s equal and meaningful participation in political and public life, see CEDAW general recommendation No. 30 (2013), para. 37. 54 C THE CONNECTION BETWEEN GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE AND OTHER HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS OR ABUSES Ibid. 55 Sexual violence in situations of armed conflict might be used as a tactic or weapon of war. This tactic of war refers to “acts of sexual violence that are linked with military/political objectives and that serve (or intend to serve) a strategic aim related to the conflict. This will rarely be reflected in overt orders, but may be evidenced by the fact that an armed group has a functioning chain of command and is able to restrain other offenses (like mutiny, desertion), while sexual violence is neither condemned nor punished by the military hierarchy” (UN Action Network Against Sexual Violence in Conflict, Analytical and Conceptual Framing of Conflict-related Sexual Violence, 2011, p. 2). See also Security Council resolution 1820 (2008) where the Security Council determined that, when used or commissioned as a tactic of war, sexual violence may impede the restoration of international peace and security. 56 As noted in section A, GBV may lead to additional human rights violations or abuses, including violations of the right to life and security of the person, the right to be protected from torture, and the rights to the highest attainable standard of physical and 46