Sexual violence against women a war weapon

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BARCELONA, Spain, April 20 (UPI) -- Sexual violence against women was used as a weapon of war in most armed conflicts in 2009, researchers in Spain said.

Researchers at the School for a Culture of Peace of Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona said their report includes a Human Rights Index that measures the level of non-compliance of states -- including Myanmar, Sudan, Pakistan, Nigeria, Thailand, Russia, Somalia and India -- in their obligation to protect human rights.

The ninth annual edition of Alerta 2010! examined the 31 armed conflicts registered in 2009 -- including 14 in Asia and 10 in Africa.

The report said violence against women was a constant in all armed conflicts and in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, sexual violence reached chronic stages.

In addition, armed forces personnel in countries such as Colombia, Myanmar and the United States used sexual violence against women, the report said.

The report said most peace processes have ignored sexual violence against women.