The theme of this year's Music Aid is sexual violence in war and conflict. The collection starts today for the benefit of survivors of violence and for preventive work.

We, the Riksdag's inter-political group for sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), welcome the Music Aid to choose to shed light on this taboo crime against humanity.

Swedish actors, including the government and various civil society organizations, have long played an important role when it comes to raising the issue of sexual violence in conflict on the global agenda.

It is crucial that the Swedish government now continues to contribute to broad solutions, where taboos are broken and survivors are put at the center.

Rape, sexual torture and a host of other sexual assaults are ongoing in conflict and post-conflict areas around the world. Syria, Uganda, Sudan, DR Congo are some seriously affected areas - but the list can be made much longer.

The issue of sexual violence in conflict has long been taboo and it was not long since it was seen as an "inevitable" byproduct of war.

Most UN resolutions and legal cases have since stated that this is a violation of human rights.

A particularly important event for the recognition of the problem was when Nadia Murad and Denis Mukwege last year were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their fight to stop the sexual violence against women in armed conflicts

In a conflict, sexual violence can be used as a weapon for the purpose of humiliating, violating, and rubbing another human being. It can also be part of a terrorist act.

Systematic rape of women and girls can be used to force a population to move, to take over land and property, or as a strategy for comprehensive ethnic cleansing.

The UN estimates that half a million women and girls were subjected to rape and abuse during the 1994 Rwanda genocide.

It is important to remember that sexual violence is also increasing among local people during, and after an armed conflict. It is in itself linked to the general normalization of violence in the conflict.

For those who survive the violence, the next violation awaits. They are often left without any help whatsoever and with life-long physical and mental injuries.

For girls and women, forced pregnancies are a consequence, and access to safe abortions is often lacking.

Often survivors are severely affected by stigma and other punishments from the surroundings, such as social isolation, difficulties in returning to their jobs, being left by their husbands - or being forced to marry their perpetrators. In principle, care and support for children subjected to sexual violence is non-existent.

Women and girls are particularly affected by sexual violence in conflict and it is usually men who are perpetrators. But all people of all ages and of all gender identities can be exposed.

In a 2017 report, UNHCR shows how sexual violence affects teenage boys and men in prisons and detention camps in Syria. The report also describes the specific vulnerability of LGBTQ people to sexual violence.

Thus, abuse and rape continue on a full scale. Every day and all over the world.

A major problem is that there are countries in the UN actively working to remove sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) from the agenda when talking about sexual violence in conflict.

Although this violence, like all sexual violence, is about violations of women's sexuality and sexual rights. It is the very essence of sexual violence.

It was a big betrayal of all against survivors when the Trump administration last spring blocked a proposal in the UN Security Council that was about giving survivors access to the SRHR.

In practice, this means that survivors are denied access to sexual and reproductive information and health care - including safe abortions.

Most experts agree that the prevalence of sexual violence is best counteracted by addressing its root causes: gender equality including deeply rooted and harmful norms and attitudes about women's and men's sexuality.

Sexual and reproductive health and rights, including the right to be protected from sexual violence and support for survivors, must be integrated into all humanitarian efforts.

At present, this is not a matter of course for humanitarian actors. The support for survivors must always put the individual at the center and look after the whole.

It is about supporting the healing of physical and mental injuries, but it is also about asking perpetrators to respond and change cultures of impunity. It requires strengthening the entire legal system.

At all levels, survivors must play a central role in shaping effective and sustainable solutions

As an important part of the work for everyone's right to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), the parliament's cross-political SRHR group - will work to ensure that sexual violence in conflict remains on the international agenda.

We believe that the Swedish government can continue to play an important role by contributing globally to comprehensive solutions to the problem. Sexual violence in conflict requires multi-faceted and preventative efforts that also take into account deeply rooted norms regarding human sexuality. Sweden can continue to work in the UN and EU to ensure that people's sexual rights are seen as a central part of the fight against sexual violence, and counteract the forces that want to erase sexual rights from the agenda.

Sara Heikkinen Breitholtz, Member of Parliament (S), Chairman

Désirée Pethrus, Member of Parliament (KD), Vice Chairman

Janine Alm Eriksson, MP (MP)

Magdalena Schröder, Member of Parliament (M)

Yasmine Posio, Member of Parliament (F)

Juno Blom, Member of Parliament (L)

Annika Qarlsson, Member of Parliament (C)