As the Council discusses potential ways in which to alter the mission’s composition and structure over the next several years, it is vital that women continue to receive political and financial resources to ensure their full and equal engagement in Haiti’s future. This is particularly important regarding support for women-led civil society organizations. The Council should send a strong message that the gains for women must be consolidated and maintained, and request that any reports detailing options for reconfiguration detail the ways in which gender will be mainstreamed, and women’s participation and protection will be core to the mission’s mandate. In its expected mandate renewal for the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), the Council should ensure the mission has:

• Sufficient capacity to support the empowerment and protection of women and girls, and access to services for survivors of violence; given the continuing violence, including sexual violence, against women in high-risk communities;
• Mandated concrete measures to improve security for women and girls by identifying best practices and feedback from the community; Increase training for justice officials on investigating and prosecuting gender-based crimes, including crimes against LGBTI persons or those believed to be; and
• Strongly reiterated obligations regarding the UN zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse, and all abuses committed against the civilian population by all MINUSTAH personnel, and the need for acts by such personnel to be properly held to account by troop- and police-contributing countries and the UN Secretariat.

As the Council discusses potential ways in which to alter the mission’s composition and structure over the next several years, it is vital that women continue to receive political and financial resources to ensure their full and equal engagement in Haiti’s future. This is particularly important regarding support for women-led civil society organizations. The Council should send a strong message that the gains for women must be consolidated and maintained, and request that any reports detailing options for reconfiguration detail the ways in which gender will be mainstreamed, and women’s participation and protection will be core to the mission’s mandate. In its expected mandate renewal for the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), the Council should ensure the mission has:

• Sufficient capacity to support the empowerment and protection of women and girls, and access to services for survivors of violence; given the continuing violence, including sexual violence, against women in high-risk communities;
• Mandated concrete measures to improve security for women and girls by identifying best practices and feedback from the community; Increase training for justice officials on investigating and prosecuting gender-based crimes, including crimes against LGBTI persons or those believed to be; and
• Strongly reiterated obligations regarding the UN zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse, and all abuses committed against the civilian population by all MINUSTAH personnel, and the need for acts by such personnel to be properly held to account by troop- and police-contributing countries and the UN Secretariat.