Refugee women walk in the Gorom refugee settlement in South Sudan during German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock's visit on Jan. 26.
The Sudanese Revolution, which led to the coup against former President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019, paved the way for Sudanese women, called "Kendake," to play a key role in the subsequent political movement.
Kendake means "Nubian Queen" in the ancient Kush civilization. And that nickname has accompanied Sudanese women as country's civil war has escalated. Sudan plunged into chaos in April 2023, when clashes between the military led by General Abdel Fattah Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo broke out into street battles in the capital, Khartoum.
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The nearly year-long conflict has killed more than 12,000 people, injured over 33,000, displaced nearly 7 million, and put the African nation on course to become the world’s worst hunger crisis, according to the UN. The UN has also reported violence against women and girls, including sexual violence and rape and gang rape, has been widespread especially in the western region of Darfur, which was the scene of a genocide in 2000s.
Sudanese women have become victims, political activists, rights defenders, who campaign for women, children and displaced people. They have not surrendered to the rights violations and the cycles of murder and rape that have befallen them.
Rather, they have embarked on a parallel journey to save Sudanese women from violence and provide assistance to survivors and those fleeing the hell of war. Women have played political roles to end the armed conflict and push for political solutions.
A protection plan
“Women are now working intensively to stop the war and push the army and the rapid forces to a comprehensive peace,” said Intisar al-Sadiq, an advisor to the peacebuilding organization Search For Common Ground Sudan, which works in areas where women are concentrated either inside Sudan or outside in Egypt, Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya and South Sudan.
Al-Sadiq highlighted Sudanese women’s ability to uncover violations and provide humanitarian support to victims, as well as taking the lead on the political scene on many historical occasions.
25% of humanitarian aid should be allocated to projects for women in conflict areas and shelter camps.
Attempts for a joint feminist action began in October, when about 70 Sudanese feminist groups demanded their involvement in efforts to stop the war and establish peace. These groups operate their activities from asylum capitals in neighbouring countries, such as Cairo, Egypt and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
A conference in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, concluded with a short-term plan to protect women from sexual violence during conflict and opening safe corridors for them. In the medium term, the plan calls for women to help in documenting and collecting data on human rights violations, especially those related to sexual violence.
In the long term, it called for 25% of humanitarian aid to be allocated to productive projects for women in conflict areas and shelter camps.
Sudan's Rapid Support Forces gather in Khartoum on May 13, 2017 for an inauguration.
A political role
Sudanese Together Against Rape and Sexual Violence Campaign issued two reports documenting crimes of sexual violence during the war. The first report focused on six provinces where the campaign documented 189 cases of sexual violence.
The Unit for Combating Violence against Women and Children said in September it documented 136 crimes of rape and sexual violence since the start of fighting. While the unit accused the military and RSF of committing sexual violence against women, it said that "Most of the assaults and cases of sexual violence related to the conflict are carried out by the RSF."
Women's groups have weak representation in political groups involved in efforts to stop the war.
In recent months, many women’s groups have held dialogue sessions with both sides of the conflict, and submitted reports on violations in conflict areas, especially in Khartoum and in the Darfur region, according to Intisar Abdullah, a Sudanese human rights activist.
Abdallah called for an end to the war, opening safe corridors to deliver relief and humanitarian aid and protecting women in conflict areas. She said a main problem women's groups are now facing is the weak representation in political groups involved in efforts to stop the war.
Sudanese activists and feminist groups are intensifying their activities to stop violations and reach peaceful political solutions that end the suffering of the victims. These activities include provide humanitarian assistance; support victims of sexual violence and other crimes; exposing the practices of the warring sides; and searching for political roles to end the war and craft a roadmap for the future.
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