Hundreds of billions of dollars have been seized around the world from gross human rights violators through national and international sanction and counter-terrorism regimes or litigation outcomes, while victims of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) and other serious human rights violations go without any sort of compensation. Although there is an increased interest in asset repurposing, there is a need to shift mindsets surrounding sanctioning and accountability for human rights violations away from a purely punitive or instrumental conception that is focused on raising the costs of abuse and/or driving behavioural change, towards one anchored in the tenets of restorative justice, giving priority to the needs and entitlements of victims.
Within this programme, the Universal Rights Group (URG), in collaboration with the Global Survivors Fund (GSF) and other partners, will design and rollout an international campaign aimed at mobilising support for repurposing the frozen assets of perpetrators of human rights violations to serve as reparations for victims, and notably survivors of CRSV.
