A/HRC/27/21 political or civil strife and instability, women and girls are exposed to heightened risks of violations of their human rights and higher levels of violence, including sexual violence. Trafficking in women and girls can be exacerbated owing to the breakdown of political, economic and social structures, increased militarism and related demands for women’s sexual, economic and military exploitation.4 During armed conflict, sexual violence is often used as a tactic of war to humiliate, dominate, instil fear in, disperse and/or forcibly relocate civilian members of a community or ethnic group.5 Ethnic cleansing and the destruction of the fabric of family and community are often also part of the deliberate strategies of warring parties.6 6. For the United Nations system, transitional justice comprises the full range of processes and mechanisms associated with a society’s attempt to come to terms with a legacy of large-scale past abuses, in order to ensure accountability, serve justice and achieve reconciliation. Transitional justice consists of both judicial and non-judicial processes and mechanisms, including prosecution initiatives, truth-seeking, reparations programmes, institutional reform or an appropriate combination thereof.7 Furthermore, comprehensive national consultations, particularly with those affected by human rights violations, have been recognized as critical element of transitional justice.8 7. Addressing gender-based and sexual violence in societies transitioning from conflict or repressive rule is vital to ensuring accountability and sustainable peace. Transitional justice processes can help to realize the rights of victims of such violence and can be instrumental in identifying and dismantling the underlying structural discrimination that enabled it to occur. As such, it is important to ensure that victims of gender-based and sexual violence are consulted effectively, that they receive adequate redress for violations, that women can fully participate in transitional justice processes and that their rights and perspectives are adequately reflected therein. 8. There has been an increased focus on the effective participation of victims in transitional justice processes, and the participatory procedures necessary to address the different needs of and opportunities for women, men, girls and boys. Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) and subsequent Council resolutions on women, peace and security, including resolution 2122 (2013), recognized the need to include women in all aspects of peacemaking, post-conflict reconstruction and peacebuilding. This includes the design, implementation and evaluation of transitional justice processes, III. National consultations 9. National consultations are a critical element of the human rights-based approach to transitional justice, and are founded on the principle that successful strategies require meaningful public participation. Consultations around the design, implementation and evaluation of transitional justice mechanisms are key to ensuring that those mechanisms are relevant and empowering to those affected by them. Without the consultation and participation of women and girls, transitional justice initiatives are likely to reflect only men’s concerns, priorities and experiences of violence and to largely overlook gender4 5 6 7 8 4 Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, general recommendation No. 30 (2013), para. 39. Security Council resolution 1820 (2008). UN-Women, A Window of Opportunity: Making Transitional Justice Work for Women (2012), p. 2. S/2004/616, para. 8. See the Guidance note of the Secretary-General on the United Nations approach to transitional justice (2010).