A/HRC/RES/23/25 Council, of 18 June 2007, and stressing that the mandate holder shall discharge his or her duties in accordance with those resolutions and the annexes thereto, Outraged by the prevalence of rape and other forms of sexual violence, which disproportionately affect women and girls, and occur in all spheres of society, in public and private life, in peace time, during periods of civil unrest or political transition, and in conflict and post-conflict situations, Recognizing that rape or any other form of sexual violence is unlawful in all circumstances and in all places, Underscores the fact that shame, stigma, fear of reprisals and negative economic consequences, such as loss of livelihood or reduced household income, prevent many women from reporting cases of rape and other forms of sexual violence, and from seeking justice for these crimes, Stressing the importance of law enforcement pursuing adequate investigations and prosecutions for rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated on any ground against women and girls, and recognizing that a lack of accountability unacceptably reinforces social normalization of and tolerance for these crimes, Acknowledging that the forced marriage of women and young girls is a violation or an abuse of their human rights and makes them particularly vulnerable to violence, including sexual violence, Deeply concerned that child, early and forced marriages expose young married girls to a greater risk of HIV and sexually transmitted infections, often lead to early childbearing and increase the risk of disability, stillbirth, obstetric fistula and maternal death, and reduce their opportunities to complete their education, gain comprehensive knowledge or develop employable skills, and violate and impair the full enjoyment of the human rights of women and girls, preventing women and girls from becoming full, contributing members of society, Recognizing that violence against women has both short- and long-term adverse consequences for their health, including their sexual and reproductive health, and the enjoyment of their human rights, and that respecting and promoting sexual and reproductive health, and protecting and fulfilling reproductive rights in accordance with the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development, the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review conferences is a necessary condition to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women to enable them to enjoy all their human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to prevent and mitigate violence against women, Recalling the inclusion of gender-related crimes and crimes of sexual violence in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, as well as the recognition by the ad hoc international criminal tribunals that rape can constitute a war crime, a crime against humanity or a constitutive act with respect to genocide or torture, Emphasizing the responsibility of all States to comply with their relevant obligations to put an end to impunity and to effectively use all appropriate means to thoroughly investigate and prosecute those subject to their jurisdiction that are responsible for such crimes, Stressing that women’s empowerment, including women’s economic empowerment and full and equal access to resources, women’s full integration into the formal economy, in particular in economic decision-making, and their full and equal participation at all levels of public, political and cultural life are essential for addressing the underlying causes of violence against women, including sexual violence, 2