If you document, investigate, monitor, report on, or otherwise gather and use information about systematic and conflict-related sexual violence, the way you approach your work can have profound consequences. You can shape whether the survivors involved feel safe or exploited, whether their participation aids recovery or compounds trauma, and whether they regret sharing their information with you or feel their voices mattered. Yet survivors are rarely asked about their own experiences of these processes. “In Our Own Words” changes that.
In this foundational resource, developed as part of the Murad Code project, survivors from around the world speak directly to those who gather and use their information, addressing questions rarely explored: “Why do we speak to you?” “What effect does it have on us when we do?” “What builds our trust and what breaks it?” “How does your preparation—or lack of it—impact us?”
Their insights reveal striking patterns about the power information-gatherers hold, how stigma and bias cause harm, what respect and dignity look like in practice, and how seemingly small choices can profoundly affect survivors' lives. These perspectives offer a vital opportunity to understand the real impact of what you do through the eyes of those most affected.