As we observe Human Rights Day, my thoughts turn to the many women and men I’ve met in conflict-affected countries who have endured atrocities in their homes, communities, and public spaces.

They, like millions more, are enduring unimaginable trauma.

Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine. The pace at which these conflicts and wars have torn lives and families apart in recent years, stripping millions of their basic rights, is simultaneously terrifying and unconscionable. Many other conflicts simmer in other corners of the world, from Somalia to Myanmar, Afghanistan and Yemen, exacting loss and deprivation upon men, women and children alike.

In the midst of conflict and violence, people are focused on their daily survival.

Yet they also hold the same aspirations and ambitions as the rest of us - health and dignity for their families, education and well-being for their children, prosperity and social cohesion in their communities. 

Our job is to help create the conditions needed for them to recover and rebuild peacefully.

Conflict as a breeding ground for atrocities

Once violence erupts, human rights violations multiply. Civilians become targets of indiscriminate killings, displacement, and sexual violence. 

In Ethiopia recently, I met with Sara*, a mother and former fighter in a two-year conflict that saw an escalation of violence.  

Sara has now chosen a path to peace. With the support of UNDP and partners she’s working to reintegrate into her community. 

She will have to re-learn skills to live a life that isn’t defined by conflict. A critical part of this process is helping revive the economy and create jobs for women like Sara who are making their way home with little but hope in their hearts for a better future. 

Institutions must also be rebuilt and the rule of law strengthened to rebuild social cohesion so that Sara, and the rest of the community, have access to basic rights, like the right to live safely, to work, to have a home and to be healthy.

Her story is not unique. This year, I’ve visited Ukraine, South Sudan, Syria and Myanmar, and in each place I hear stories like Sara’s. Stories of peoples’ rights being stripped away by conflict, causing grievances to deepen. 

In Gaza, over 43,000 people have been killed in just over a year. Countless more are injured, homeless, jobless and unsure where their next meal will come from. 

The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has called the situation a “moral stain on us all”.

In Sudan, horrific rights abuses have been reported across the country, as over 11 million have been forcibly displaced since conflict broke out in April 2023. Reports include a rise in sexual and gender-based violence and alleged crimes against humanity in some regions. 

The longer the violence and associated profound rights abuses continue in these places, the harder it will be for communities to recover. 

A warning of violence

We know that human rights abuses are heightened in war and conflict. But evidence also shows that the erosion of human rights can spark violence. According to a World Bank report, each one-step decline on the Political Terror Scale—which tracks arbitrary detention, torture, and extrajudicial killings—more than doubles the risk of civil war. 

The Pathways for Peace study by the UN and World Bank finds that countries whose governments disregard human rights through actions such as torture, political imprisonment and forced disappearances, are at greater risk of violent conflict. The absence of meaningful participation in decision-making also exacerbates this. 

Globally, this connection is widely recognized. Understanding this trend is a powerful tool in itself.