Preventing sexual exploitation and abuse starts by understanding the rules
DANBURY, Conn., USA – 6 March, 2019
Translators without Borders (TWB), in partnership with the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), has created a plain-language version of the principles relating to sexual exploitation and abuse and published it in 75 languages. Making the principles easier to understand and available in many languages helps crisis-affected people understand their rights, and ensures humanitarians know the consequences of abuse.
“Sexual exploitation and abuse in the humanitarian world is unacceptable. All of us must do more to ensure that abuses of power are not tolerated. That starts with understanding the principles. Making the rules clear and in languages people can understand helps everyone understand what is acceptable. We must prevent sexual exploitation and abuse,” says TWB executive director Aimee Ansari.
The translations so far include languages spoken on five continents – from Amharic to Vietnamese. The translated principles are available online. Humanitarian organizations are encouraged to download, distribute, and post them in humanitarian facilities worldwide to help prevent sexual exploitation and abuse.
The six principles explain the rules of sexual conduct for aid workers and what will happen if they break them.
TWB first worked with the IASC Task Team to develop a simplified English version of the principles. Together, the team removed legal jargon and complex sentence structures from the guidelines, to make the rules explicit and clear.
TWB and the IASC Task Team plan to publish the principles in at least 100 languages.
Publishing the principles in 75 languages supports TWB’s commitment to reduce exploitation and abuse in the aid sector and make information about rights and consequences available in more languages. In 2019, TWB will expand its efforts to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse in the aid sector through advocacy, testing language-appropriate processes that increase accountability, and developing training materials for interpreters and humanitarians.
Update 31 May 2019: the translated principles can be viewed and downloaded here.
About Translators without Borders
Translators without Borders (TWB) envisions a world where knowledge knows no language barriers. The US-based non-profit provides people access to vital knowledge in their language by connecting non-profit organizations with a community of language professionals, building local language solutions and raising awareness of the power of language. Originally founded in 1993 in France (as Traducteurs sans Frontières), TWB translates millions of words of lifesaving and life-changing information a year.
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