A/HRC/40/CRP.1 sentenced to a fine and if unable to pay will serve time in prison instead. 582 Marital rape is explicitly excluded from the legal definition of rape in South Sudan or in customary law. 583 Rape cases fall within the jurisdiction of statutory courts but are unlikely to result in successful convictions because of evidentiary burden on women, gender biases and the perceived shame on the family and the community brought about by rape.584 There is a great deal of pressure on survivors to report rape in a system which is unable to address the security and protection of victims.585 In cases of gang rape or when the perpetrator is unknown, a woman or a girl will experience greater stigma in her family and community, as her family will not be able to marry her off or obtain a lesser bride price and so the family is unlikely to report it.586 However, recent judicial developments are starting to show some progress in this regard.587 More work needs to be done to educate survivors and their families about the rights of rape victims. Victims and their families operate under the misconception that a police form, “Form 8”,588 is necessary in order to receive medical attention following rape or that it is mandatory for the victim to report to the police.589 It has also been reported that in some instances a fee was requested in order to issue a Form 8 while its issuance is free of charge.590 Fearing to be stigmatized, many survivors avoid seeking medical attention believing that this form is necessary or that reporting to authorities is mandatory. 9. Conflict-related Sexual Violence and Gender-Based crimes Conflict-related sexual violence refers to rape, sexual slavery, forced prostitution, forced pregnancy, forced abortion, enforced sterilization, forced marriage and any other form of sexual violence of comparable gravity perpetrated against women, men, girls or boys that is directly or indirectly linked to a conflict.591 Gender-based crimes are those committed against persons, whether male or female, because of their sex and/or socially constructed gender roles and do not always manifest as a form of sexual violence and may include nonsexual attacks on women and girls, and men and boys, because of their gender. 592 Sexual violence, including rape, constitute gross violations which can amount to crimes under international humanitarian law and the domestic law of South Sudan. The Commission has continued to document incidents of rape and sexual violence committed by all parties to the conflict. Sexual violence, and especially rape and gang-rape, have been a central feature of the conflict in South Sudan. The recent signing of the R-ARCSS in 2018 has not prevented incidents of conflictrelated sexual violence. In Unity State and the Bentiu area in particular, women have been the subject of ongoing attacks when travelling on foot to access humanitarian aid or when looking for firewood. Human Security Baseline Assessment for South Sudan and Sudan, “Women’s Security and the Law in South Sudan”, Small Arms Survey, March 2012; What Works to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls consortium, “No safe Place: A lifetime of violence for conflict-affected women and girls in South Sudan”, 2017. 583 Penal Code Act (2008), section 247; UNDP, In search of a working system of justice for a new nation. The ascertainment of customary laws of the Toposa, Lokuto (Otuho), Lango and Lopit Communities of the Eastern Equatoria State of South Sudan, Serie 1, Volume 1, 2012. 584 Human Security Baseline Assessment for South Sudan and Sudan, “Women’s Security and the Law in South Sudan”, Small Arms Survey, March 2012. 585 Confidential Meetings, 17, 20 and 27 January 2019. 586 Michael Arensen, “If we leave we are killed. Lessons learned from South Sudan Protection of Civilian Sites 2013-2016”, IOM, 2016. 587 See for example, Mobile courts sessions held in Bentiu in December 2018 and January 2019. 588 Confidential Meeting, 3 October 2018; M. Hove, E, Ndawana, “Women’s Rights in Jeopardy: the case of war-torn South Sudan”, Sage open, October-December 2017: 1-13. Radio Tamazuj, “South Sudan interior minister reinstates use of ‘Form 8’ at hospitals”, 2 July 2018. 589 Confidential Meetings, 3 October 2018 and 27 January 2018; Care, “‘The girl has no rights’: Gender-Based violence in South Sudan”, Report, 2014. 590 Confidential Meeting, 3 October 2018; UNFPA and DPK, “Adapting restorative justice principles to reform customary courts in dealing with gender-based violence in Southern Sudan”, Final Report, 1 May 2008. 591 Report of the Secretary-General on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence, S/2018/250, 16 April 2018. 592 See International Criminal Court, Office of the Prosecutor, International Criminal Court Policy Paper on Sexual and GenderBased Crimes, June 2014. 582 88