Yahoo Lifestyle Angelina Jolie Speaks Out Against Sexual Violence
Angelina Jolie has delivered a powerful speech against wartime rape at the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in London.
The 39-year old actress and marie claire covergirl opened the event by saying she had met a woman in Bosnia who was still too ashamed to tell her son she had been raped.
"This day is for her," said Jolie. "We believe it truly is a summit like no other."
Amidst bursts of applause, Jolie said there was nothing inevitable about wartime sexual violence.
"It is a myth that rape is an inevitable part of conflict. It is a weapon of war aimed at civilians. It has nothing to do with sex and everything to do with power. It is done to torture and humiliate innocent people and often very young children."
Jolie then appealed to the 150 nation representatives in the room to imagine a world just like theirs, but without "doctors that we can go to when were hurt, and police we can turn to when were wronged, and institutions that protect us."
"I have met survivors from Afghanistan to Somalia, and they are just like us - with one crucial difference - they live in refugee camps, or bombed out streets in areas where there is no law, no protection and not even the hope of justice," said Jolie. "They struggle to keep their children safe, and if they admit to being raped, they are likely to face more violence and social rejection."
Jolie suggested justice be the norm, not the exception for such crimes, and that the Summit should instigate the conversation around making it happen.
"Wartime rape is a crime that thrives on silence and denial," added Jolie. "We must send a message around the world that there is no disgrace in being a survivor of sexual violence, that the shame is on the aggressor."
Jolie was joined onstage by British Foreign Secretary William Hague Hague, who later announced that Britain will pledge a further $10 million to help survivors of sexual violence in conflict.
Hague also stated that countries will be asked to update their legislature on rape and sexual violence if they do not already align with international law.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, who will attend the conference on Friday, said delegates from 117 countries wanted to "relegate sexual violence to the annals of history".
To view Angelina's entire speech, click here.
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