Author: DWAG Communication

Carla Ruas

On April 30, 2006, 50,000 people gathered at the National Mall, in Washington, DC, to participate in the “Save Darfur” rally, an event planned to mobilize support for the victims of the Darfur genocide. In the crowd were activists, politicians, and celebrities, as well as an observant 10-year-old named Adeena Eisen. “I remember realizing that there was something horrible happening in the world,” says Eisen, who is now an intern at DWAG; “And that it was important to speak out.”

Eisen was born and raised in the Washington, DC area, as part of a traditional Jewish community that was deeply impacted by the Holocaust. They vowed to make sure that such an atrocity never took place in the world again. Eisen took the vow to heart and continues to strive for it in her life and career.

Family History

In the early 1930’s, antisemitism was sweeping through all aspects of life in Poland. Eisen’s paternal grandfather’s family decided to leave the country in search of better opportunities. They found a new home in Canada. In the following years, they watched, horrified, as Nazis took over Europe and as discriminatory measures against Jews turned into genocide. By the end of the Holocaust, most of their extended family in Poland had perished.

The family eventually moved to the United States, where Robert Eisen was born. Marked by his family’s history, he went on to study Judaism with a broader interest in the relationship between religion, peace and violence, and is now Chair of the Department of Religion at George Washington University (GWU). He married Naomi Eisen, a dedicated Grant Writer for the Montgomery Housing partnership – an organization that works to provide affordable housing to low-income families in Montgomery County, Maryland. Adeena is the daughter of Robert and Naomi.

Growing up, the young Eisen grappled to understand how such horrific acts could be perpetrated against her ancestors. “It has been hard,” she admits. “But at the same time, it has shaped me, not only religiously, but also in the way that I look at other atrocities happening around the world and how it impacts people’s lives.”

Taking action

Eisen is currently an undergraduate student at George Washington University (GWU), where she focuses on International Relations and Philosophy. She chose these fields because she believes that they complement each other – while one covers politics and foreign affairs, the other helps one to think critically and make good arguments. “My goal is to use them to understand what kind of values we should strive for in the world.”

In January, Eisen also began an internship at DWAG. The organization appealed to her because it works to end modern-day genocide and because it strives to give affected communities and women a voice. The genocide in Darfur has been ongoing for thirteen years, and women and girls are systematically raped by Sudanese army men and militia. However, peace deals tend to exclude women from the negotiating table, and justice and accountability for such acts have not been considered a priority. “I really want to change that, and I feel that DWAG really cares about it,” Eisen says.

As part of her work at DWAG, she is organizing and mobilizing the Rapid Response Network, a group of volunteers around the world that help DWAG achieve its goals by engaging in simple actions. Rapid Responders often call their legislators to ask for their support, educate their community, mobilize friends and family to sign petitions and share DWAG’s content on social media to bring attention and demand effective response to genocide in Darfur.

Eisen’s goal is to draw more attention to DWAG’s cause. Attention for the Darfur genocide has dwindled, in spite of increasing violence against civilians on the ground. “I remember when Darfur was a really big deal but soon that attention faded and today I want to see that kind of attention and care from individuals, students, activist, and policy makers again,” she says. “I want to see the kind of mobilization that I saw in that rally eleven years ago.”

Carla Ruas

In the early 1980s, a communist militant group named Shining Path gained power in Peru, attracting a large number of followers and taking over territories in the countryside. In the process, the group became extremely violent. Members assassinated political rivals, community organizers and peasants who opposed their beliefs. They also killed innocent civilians by planting deadly bombs in shopping malls, banks, and on the streets.

Nicholas Cabrejos, Darfur Women Action Group’s (DWAG’s) Outreach Intern, was only two years old when terrorist attacks became more frequent in his city of birth, Lima. His parents were terrified. They feared that their child would grow up in a violent environment and without access to a good education. After considering their options, they made the difficult decision to leave the country and moved to the United States.

In contrast to the violent environment in which he was born, Cabrejos — or Nick, as he likes to be called — now exudes peace and tranquility to everyone around him. “I hate conflicts of any nature,” he says, “I believe that progress is hindered when energy is spent on fighting”. This aversion to hostility led to an interest in working to end conflicts across the globe. To that end, Cabrejos is studying political science at Marymount University, and he plans to acquire a master’s degree in conflict resolution in the future.

Darfur Genocide

It was at Marymount University that Cabrejos first learned about the Darfur genocide. In the beginning of 2016, he attended a panel about Sudan that featured DWAG’s president and genocide survivor Niemat Ahmadi. Nick was struck by Niemat’s powerful presentation about the ongoing genocide in Darfur, and how it has affected more than 400 thousand people over 13 years.

Cabrejos was so struck by the situation in Darfur that he approached Ms. Ahmadi during the panel’s coffee break. “I remember eating a sandwich while anxiously waiting for the right moment to approach her,” he recalls.“I asked her if there was anything that I could do to help.”

Since then, Cabrejos has been a fixed presence at DWAG’s office in Washington, DC. His job as an Outreach Intern is to make connections with individuals and organizations that can advance DWAG’s cause and projects. According to Cabrejos, the best part of his work is reminding important people — such as members of the United States Congress — that there is an ongoing genocide in Darfur. “They are very busy with other issues, so I am proud to be the one who educates them about the urgency of the situation,” he says.

The benefits of his internship might go even further. In the future, Cabrejos wants to apply the knowledge that he is acquiring in international relations and conflict resolution towards improving life in his home country. “I want to improve education for children in Peru, especially in the countryside,” he says. “But I will always take the Darfur cause with me, for the rest of my life.”

Niemat Ahmadi

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir recently traveled to Jordan for the 28th summit of the Arab League. His presence was a stark contrast to 2014, when Jordan did not allow him to enter Amman, the capital of Jordan, to attend the summit. The reason for the ban was the pending arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Since 2009, al-Bashir is wanted for five counts of crimes against humanity, two counts of war crimes, and three counts of genocide.

Jordan has always been known as the Arab world’s leader in providing a safe haven for refugees. The country has taken in thousands of Iraqis, Palestinians, and Syrians as they fled war zones. However, the Jordanian Government should not allow a war criminal such as Omar al-Bashir to enter the country without facing the consequences of an international arrest warrant.

As recently as January 2016, President al-Bashir’s regime used chemical weapons against civilians in Darfur and the Nuba mountains killing nearly 250 people – mostly women and children. Additionally, it is a well-known fact that the regime has sponsored terrorism, welcoming Al Qaeda into the country in the 1990s, and more recently arming terrorist organizations such as Hamas and Islamic jihadist groups. All of these blatant violations of international law are good reasons for al-Bashir’s immediate arrest and ban from international conferences such as the Arab League summit.

All states must abide by their treaty obligations and anything to the contrary hurts the ICC’s objectives and aims, as recently pointed out by Prince Zeid bin Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Jordan, as an important player in the region, should stand with the victims of genocide in Darfur instead of aiding a criminal such as al-Bashir to evade justice.

by Adeena Eisen

“This is not just a humanitarian issue,” said Anne-Marie Slaughter, President and CEO of New America, a think-tank based in Washington D.C. Slaughter was referring to the international community’s handling of mass atrocities. On January 31, 2017, she spoke as part of the panel “After Aleppo: Prospects for Preventing Mass Atrocities in the New Trump Administration,” which I had the privilege of attending at the New America headquarters. The purpose of the panel was to address how the United States and the international community should respond to mass atrocities, especially in light of the new Trump administration.

Slaughter, who introduced the panel, spoke of how it is a grave mistake to address mass atrocities solely as humanitarian crises. In fact, if governments that commit human rights abuses are not stopped, they will inevitably pose security threats to the international community.

Such a perspective is vital to the goals of Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG). The genocide in Darfur does not just affect people living in the immediate region, but it also has repercussions for the global community. For example, the flow of refugees to European countries from crisis-affected areas—including Darfur—has presented major challenges to the European Union (EU). If the international community had acted preemptively to end such crises in Darfur or elsewhere, perhaps Europe would be dealing with a less overwhelming influx of refugees, which is difficult for any society to handle. This demonstrates that the international community has a stake in preventing mass atrocities.

Of course, preventing mass atrocities must be done out of good will too, or else it leads to short-sighted solutions. For example, the European Union (EU) is currently investing large sums of money to prevent more refugees from entering Europe. Even if this ‘solution’ is successful in keeping refugees out of European borders, it will not benefit the victims or end the genocide in Darfur.

Unfortunately, the tools needed to deal with genocide and other mass atrocities are limited. Luckily, other speakers on the panel were able to offer potential solutions that could expand the range of tools needed to prevent such crimes against humanity. Rich Fontaine, President of the Center for New American Policy, discussed the importance of investigating the financing of mass atrocities. This strategy could be especially relevant because the U.S. recently lifted sanctions on the Sudanese government. Reinstating these sanctions may block some of the financial resources that enable the government to commit human rights abuses against Darfuris.

This panel was valuable because it serves as a reminder that we must speak up and raise awareness among global leaders that ending the genocide in Darfur is in their own interest. By doing so, we can hold the Sudanese government accountable for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed in Darfur and change how the international community responds to genocide.

On the 8th anniversary of Sudanese President al-Bashir’s arrest warrant, we at Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) would like to express our grave concern regarding the continued impunity that the president enjoys. Despite the fact that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has charged President al-Bashir with committing genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, many countries have failed to cooperate with the ICC in holding him and other Sudanese leaders responsible for these heinous crimes.
We had hoped that justice would be forthcoming, if not through the ICC then through other forms. Instead, we have observed the United States improve relations with Sudan, even lifting economic sanctions that have been in place since the 1990s. At the same time, the European Union recently joined Sudan in creating an initiative that bars refugees from entering Europe. By allowing the Sudanese regime to get away with its crimes with impunity, the United States and the European Union not only undermine the ICC, but also embolden President al-Bashir and other war criminals who feel entitled to ignore (and even deny) the applicability of customary international law, including the Geneva Conventions, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
The international community has repeatedly failed to impose consequences for President al-Bashir’s atrocities and has allowed the government of Sudan to continue its crimes in Darfur and throughout Sudan with impunity, betraying the people of Sudan who face violence every day.

ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF HIS INDICTMENT, LET US NOT FORGET:

THE CRIMES
President al-Bashir stands accused of the world’s most heinous crimes—genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The president launched the genocide in Darfur more than 13 years ago, by ordering the Sudanese Armed Forces and allied Janjaweed militias to carry out a scorched-earth campaign against the civilian population.

Since then, more than 300,000 people have been reported killed and thousands of villages have been destroyed. Rape has been systematically used as a weapon of war, and girls and women are attacked on a daily basis. Human rights defenders such as lawyers, journalists, and students are regularly arrested, tortured, and/or killed in custody.
To date, the Sudanese Government continues to carry out or sponsor violent attacks against innocent civilians in Darfur – including a recent massacre in Nertiti City that left 13 people dead and 60 people wounded. We are also deeply troubled that there have been allegations of the use of chemical weapons which still have not been investigated by the United Nations (UN).
DETERIORATING HUMANITARIAN CONDITIONS
In 2009, after learning of the ICC arrest warrant against him, President al-Bashir retaliated. The Sudanese President forced 13 international NGOs to leave Sudan and shut down three national organizations that provided lifesaving assistance for internally displaced people (IDPs) in Darfur. As a result, humanitarian conditions severely deteriorated and IDPs were subjected to starvation, diseases, water shortages, and acute malnutrition. To this day, conditions have not improved. Over 3 million Darfuris remain displaced and are unable to return home, in part because foreigners have occupied most of their lands.
EIGHT YEARS OF IMPUNITY MUST END
March 4, 2017, marks the 8th anniversary of the ICC arrest warrant against President al-Bashir. During this time, we have seen some ICC state parties demonstrate a strong commitment to justice by restricting al-Bashir’s ability to travel freely around the world.
Other countries, however, have consistently failed to hold the president accountable. China, a United Nations Security Council member, welcomed President al-Bashir for a state visit in 2011. Other ICC members, such as Chad, South Africa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti and Nigeria, have greeted and hosted the president. Among the countries that are not ICC members but have also welcomed Bashir are Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and South Sudan.
The failure to hold President al-Bashir accountable not only has devastating effects inside Sudan, but sends the wrong message to leaders like Syrian President Assad and others who are perpetrating extreme violence throughout the world. It supports their ability to continue killing their own people with total impunity.
If not in the name of the Security Council resolutions which referred the matter to the ICC; if not in the name of the Rome Statute, then in the name of the Geneva Conventions binding on all States, we urge all members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and the States parties to the Rome Statute to stand for justice and make this year the last anniversary of President al-Bashir‘s impunity.
We demand that Member States of the United Nations, and especially members of the Security Council and the Rome Statute, abide by the obligations deriving from the ICC arrest warrants against President al-Bashir and other Sudanese leaders. They will get far more justice in The Hague than their victims have gotten. To our African brothers an sisters, we recall that the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights clearly articulates and obligates African Union’s members to promote justice, rule of law and human dignity at home and internationally. To our Muslim brothers and sisters, we recall that Islam prohibits attacks on civilians especially the rape of innocent women and girls.
We urge western countries to consider withholding military and/or economic aid (with the exception of humanitarian aid) from countries that allow President al-Bashir to enter into their territory without being arrested. The United Nations (UN) should also seriously consider adopting new mechanisms to allow the enforcement of ICC arrest warrants on any areas administered by the UN, including its headquarters.
It is imperative that the international community makes it clear to President al-Bashir and all perpetrators of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, that their impunity will not be tolerated for another year.

Bijan Razzaghi

Bloody vomiting, difficulty breathing, diarrhea, rashes on the skin, miscarriage among women and loss of vision. These are some of the symptoms described by the victims of chemical attacks in Jebel Marra, a region in Darfur, Sudan. According to a report published by the nonprofit Amnesty International, more than 30 chemical attacks were carried out by the Sudanese government in the area of Jebel Marra in 2016 – as recently as September. The strikes claimed the lives of at least 250 innocent civilians, including many children, and continue to cause pain and suffering. Reports coming from the ground indicate that many individuals are still dealing with health complications stemming from the chemicals.

The government has denied independent investigators access to the areas affected, and therefore a thorough investigation into the chemical weapons use in Darfur is still pending. However, photographs and testimonies from victims suggest that the chemical of choice for these vicious attacks was blister agent (also known as mustard gas) – a compound of sulfur mustard and nitrogen mustard. The substance, used by Saddam Hussein against Iran and the Kurds in the 1980s, can cause blistering and peeling of the skin, respiratory distress, and loss of vision. The compound is not an instant killer, but it can trigger long-term health complications that can eventually be fatal. In other words, deaths caused by this agent are slow and painful – making it the most cruel war weapon in the market.

The compound was most likely delivered through artillery shells or aerial bombs dropped by Sudanese Air Force planes SU-24s, SU-25s, and A-5s. It is widely known that these aircraft were provided by Russia and China, and that they are capable of carrying these types of chemical bombs. The planes have been spotted in airfields located in the cities El Fesher and Nayala – which is in itself a problem. Their presence violates the United Nations Security Council’s (UNSC) resolution 1556, which states that no military aircraft should be operating in the Darfur region.

Fighting Impunity

Although there is no physical evidence of the attacks in Darfur, there is little doubt that they took place. Among the 56 witnesses featured in Amnesty International’s report, many described bombs falling from the sky that exploded into “a toxic cloud of smoke.” This description matches other accounts of chemical weapons recorded in different parts of the world. Other than that, it is hard to believe that hundreds of people in Darfur would lie about what they saw and experienced, as well as the resulting health issues that affects them to this day.

These tragic testimonies should have been enough to make the international community demand justice and accountability for these crimes. In the least, they should have sparked sufficient outrage for the United Nations to demand immediate access for an independent investigation in the area. However, there has been little to no reaction from most world leaders, including the United States. It is surprising, considering that three years earlier a similar event occurred in Syria and there was a major reaction, even resulting in the destruction of that country’s chemical weapons. Why is Sudan an exception?

It is particularly important that the international community be reminded that the chemical weapons attacks in Darfur violate the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), an arms control treaty supported by the United Nations (UN) that forbids the production, stockpiling and use of chemical agents. Furthermore, they violate the laws of war determined by the Geneva Convention, specially the ones that protect civilians and civilian objects. And lastly, the use of chemical weapons by the Sudanese government demonstrates a blatant disregard for human life and the wellbeing of citizens living in Darfur and the the values that the Geneva Convention has preached.

It is time that this issue be treated with the seriousness that it deserves. The victims’ accounts need be taken into consideration as evidence. The United Nations (UN), the United States and member states of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) must demand immediate access to the areas affected for an independent investigation. The Sudanese government should be held to the same standards as other leaders who have committed similar crimes. It is morally and legally imperative to apply appropriate measures on the chemical attacks in Darfur, and to ensure that perpetrators pay for their crimes.

Ignoring serious crimes such as genocide and the use of chemical weapons will not only embolden criminals like President al-Bashir of Sudan, but will also further erode international norms and put our institutions’ competency in question.