AKIPRESS.COM - The actress and UN special envoy Angelina Jolie has said a four-day summit on ending sexual violence during war must send a message that there is no disgrace in being a victim.

Ms Jolie was speaking alongside British Foreign Secretary William Hague, who is co-hosting the London summit with her.

The event - the largest ever of its kind - is the result of an intense two-year campaign to raise awareness.

Mr Hague said rape was one of the "great mass crimes" of modern times.

He called on the more than 140 nations at the summit to write action against sexual violence into their army training.

The summit aims to launch a new international protocol for documenting and investigating sexual violence in conflict, and encourage countries to strengthen domestic laws to enable prosecution surge countries to train all soldiers and peacekeepers to prevent sexual violenceincrease funding to support survivors of sexual violence change attitudes towards rape in conflict.

The organisers want the event to be the moment the world wakes up and declares that sexual violence is not an inevitable part of war, says BBC World Affairs Correspondent Paul Adams.