Women from Darfur Know What They Want...But Will Anyone Listen?

A report was released on Sunday by Physicians for Human Rights detailing accounts of sexual violence against Darfuri refugee women. It revealed that almost half of those surveyed were raped, largely by the Janjaweed militia and villagers around the Chadian refugee camps, and continued to live in fear of further attacks.

Eighty-eight women were interviewed from the Farchana refugee camp in Eastern Chad who reported being targeted while running daily errands, such as gathering firewood or herding livestock. These are errands their husbands can no longer do for fear of being killed by armed groups, militia or the Janjaweed. The women are left with no other choice but to put their bodies in harm's way and live with the pain, horror, and stigma of being raped and brutally attacked. One by one, each woman gave their personal testimony and eyewitness accounts detailing horrifying levels of violence, intimidation and isolation they were forced to endure in Darfur and the refugee camps.

Women from Darfur bear the heaviest burden in the camps as they are forced to venture into the deadliest situations only to return home and face severe isolation and punishment. A handful of women, after being publicly beaten and tortured by authorities simply for earning a living outside of the camp, drafted a one-page document known as the Farchana Manifesto, and outlined some of their grievances. They included:

• Lack of equal treatment towards women in the camps and surrounding areas
• Little to no regard for the life and security of a woman
  
• Restrictions on freedom of movement
  
• Lack of freedom of speech and support for their opinions
• Lack of educational opportunities
• Little institutional support to address women's concerns
  

(For the full version of the Farchana Manifesto in English, click here)

When I had the chance to meet with internally displaced women in Darfur, I asked one mother why she did it, why she went out alone to run errands and if she knew what the risks were by doing so. She told me that if the men went out, they would be killed by the Janjaweed or the armed groups. But if the women left, they wouldn't be killed, they would just be raped. "Just be raped".

Time and time again, we learn far too late that the best method to end violence against women is to prevent it. Local and international organizations continue to provide critical services to Darfuri women, such as medical care, counseling, and literacy and job skills training, but it is not enough.

There must be stronger mechanisms for protecting civilians. The international community must do more to aid in the protection and rehabilitation of victims who are forced to suffer alone and in silence. Because women are more likely to be sexually attacked, it is imperative that protection measures are tailored to meet their needs.

For instance, there should more opportunities for women to earn a living near the camps, increased funding and support for protection of civilians and prevention of gender-based violence must be given to MINURCAT and UNAMID peacekeeping missions, more women peacekeepers must be trained and deployed, and the perpetrators of the attacks must be brought to justice through traditional and legal mechanisms.

Specifically:

• Women should be able to take care of their families and earn a living without having to leave far from the camp. Organizations still operating in Darfur and in Eastern Chad should invest more in women's job skills training, continue to provide alternatives to firewood, and create micro-enterprise opportunities for women to work from the camps
  
• UN Member States must provide more funding to support MINURCAT and UNAMID. Funding should go to training and capacity building for more equipment, troop training on mandate interpretation and responding to gender-based violence, and more law enforcement, health, and social sciences civilian peacekeeping personnel
  
• Similar to India's 2007 deployment to Liberia, more UN Member States should recruit, train, and deploy women peacekeepers and all-female contingents in accordance with UNSC Resolution 1325 to patrol the camps and the surrounding areas and counsel victims
• Chad should establish mobile courts and military courts to address the violations in the eastern part of the country
  
• The ICC should integrate Darfuri rape victim's demands for justice, accountability, and compensation into the court proceedings against Ahmed Haroun, Ali Kushayeb, and Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir
  

Darfuri women spoke up and are demanding that the world listen. The Farchana Manifesto is just one of many examples that show these women are not helpless or weak. They are using their own voices to tell the world what they need to live with the peace and security so many of us elsewhere take for granted. It is the responsibility of the Chadian government and the international community to prioritize their needs and provide greater support and protection before more civilians are attacked.

Semhar Araia is an Africa analyst and consultant living in Washington, D.C.