Murad Code Project - Quarterly Highlights
This is the second 2025 quarterly update on key highlights from the Murad Code project. If you would like to learn more about any of these activities or discuss collaborating with the team, please reach out to info@muradcode.com.
Survivors in Côte d’Ivoire publish powerful advocacy video ahead of national elections
Survivors in Côte d’Ivoire have drawn on the principles of the Murad Code to collaboratively develop a powerful advocacy video – “Don’t Forget About Us” – which was published in May 2025, in the lead up to national elections. The video showcases the strength and determination of survivors to break cycles of silence and marginalisation. Through their voices, they are building pathways toward justice, reparations and healing – not only for themselves but also for others in Côte d’Ivoire who share their experiences of sexual violence during conflict.
Read the blog, watch the video, and share to support survivor-led advocacy in the region.
Call for case studies: Have you used the Murad Code?
The project team is beginning to gather case studies that demonstrate how individuals and organisations have used the Murad Code in practice. If you have used the Murad Code in any of the following ways, we want to hear from you:
Participated in or delivered training or other kinds of capacity-building or -support that draws on the Murad Code.
Used the Code to inform or change how you gather and use information about systematic and conflict-related sexual violence.
Integrated the Code into your SOPs, internal systems, organisational standards, partnership engagements or agreements.
Used the Code to improve coordination across sectors or enhance survivors’ rights.
These case studies will help build a shared understanding of the Code’s impact and offer practical examples for others to learn from. If you are interested in being interviewed, please email info@muradcode.com.
Upcoming deadline for feedback on the pilot Open-Source Practitioner’s Guide – 30 June 2025
IICI and the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law have launched a pilot version of a guide for open-source practitioners on how to conduct survivor-centred and effective open-source research, investigations and other information-gathering into systematic and conflict-related sexual violence (SCRSV), using the Code as the benchmark and framework.
Practitioners are invited to share feedback on and suggested additions to the pilot version of guide by 30 June 2025, before the final version is published later this year.
Work underway to finalise Survivor Perspectives Resource – publication expected summer 2025
Work continued this quarter to finalise the upcoming Survivor Perspectives Resource, with the input of survivors in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Colombia, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Nepal, and Syria. This new resource will bring together quotes and reflections from survivors about their experiences of being interviewed and consulted by a wide range of information-gatherers, sending a powerful message to practitioners undertaking this work about the impact their approach has for survivors. Alongside the Survivor Perspectives Resource, the project team will in due course share tips and example resources on engaging with survivors safely and ethically to develop such tools, drawing on the lessons learned throughout this process:
Example informed consent form – for in-person engagements.
Example informed consent form – for remote engagements.
Example budget lines – to consider including from the outset for planned partnerships, consultations or other engagements with survivors.