Washington, DC – As the United Nations commemorates Resolution 1325, a landmark resolution recognizing the unique impact of conflict on women and girls, we are reminded that Sudanese women remain sidelined from important decision-making processes while facing the consequences of these decisions. Women simultaneously face the disproportionate impacts of the conflict while acting as frontline leaders and advocates for peace. Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) recognizes the indispensable role of women in peace processes, and we advocate for the inclusion of women’s voices at the highest levels of decision making.
This year, the UN Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Week coincides with the anniversary of the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the worst atrocity in El Fasher’s history. The UN Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan (FFM) found “hallmarks of genocide,” including evidence of systematic starvation, deprivation of basic care, and the imposition of conditions of life calculated to bring about the physical destruction of communities. These were identity-based killings, and the RSF deliberately targeted women at the intersection of gender and ethnicity, deploying rape as a weapon of war. This is a crime against humanity, and we demand the international community to prosecute it as such under international law.
The international community failed El Fasher and continues to fail the women of Sudan by failing to heed early warning signs, implement civilian protection measures, or establish frameworks for justice and accountability. Women face unspeakable violence at the hands of the RSF, deliberately targeting women and weaponizing sexual violence to ethnically cleanse communities, and widespread impunity leaves the perpetrators and enablers of crimes against humanity without consequences.
Inaction from the international community, such as in the case of El Fasher, undermines any prevention mechanisms instituted by the UN. As civil society and grassroot organizations sound the alarm for catastrophe in El Obeid, the international community is once again failing to listen and act accordingly. We are deeply alarmed at the developments in El Obeid and the international community’s repeated failure to act. We refuse to allow El Obeid to become the next El Fasher.
Elite-driven negotiations exclude women from the negotiating table, rewarding men with guns with the ability to shape the future of Sudan. Despite WPS calling for the full and equal participation of women at the negotiating table, high-level mediation efforts, including the Quad (US, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt) and the Quintet (AU, League of Arab States, EU, and UN), exclude women’s voices and women-led organizations. These organizations are frontline responders, playing significant roles in local mediation, peacebuilding, and providing humanitarian response. Peace cannot and will not be sustainable without the inclusion of women’s unique perspectives, voices, and experiences.
DWAG refuses to stay silent on the structural and international failures prolonging atrocity in Sudan. We will continue to amplify the women directly affected by conflict and raise their voices to the international community, demanding accountability and justice for grave crimes against humanity. We call for greater inclusion and enforcement of the WPS agenda throughout all peacebuilding endeavors, and we will continue to demand the participation of women at the negotiating table. There can be no lasting peace or credible humanitarian response without the meaningful inclusion of women.
Darfur Women Action Group calls upon the United Nations and the broader international community to support our calls to action:
- Listen to and Integrate the Voices of Survivors, Women, and Affected Communities in all decision-making related to resolving this crisis and preventing future atrocities.
- Actively support the establishment of UN-supported civilian protection mechanisms – such as humanitarian corridors for civilians and aid workers and safe spaces for survivors of sexual violence and displacement – ensuring they are built in active conflict zones, in consultation with affected communities, and not limited to areas already accessible to international actors.
- Enforce an Immediate Ceasefire between the RSF and SAF with Civilian Protection Guarantees, including an immediate halt to all aerial bombardment, drone strikes, and siege tactics, and mandate the withdrawal of RSF forces from civilian zones in El Obeid, Darfur, and Kordofan.
- Open Safe Humanitarian Corridors by Land and Air with guaranteed and unobstructed access for food, medical aid, fuel, and emergency response teams, including cross-border corridors through Chad, free from interference, attack, or blockade.
- Call for dedicated and flexible funding for women-led and women’s rights organizations across all UN agency donors, with simplified reporting requirements and genuine partnership in program structures that accommodate the realities of operating in active conflict zones.
- Actively Prioritize accountability mechanisms for perpetrators and enablers for past and present crimes committed in Sudan.
With Gratitude,
Niemat Ahmadi
President, Darfur Women Action Group