Author: DWAG Communication

I Went to Jail Because I am Not Afraid Stand Up for Rape Victims

“I was born in Kurdufan, an area in Western Sudan. My family is from Darfur and still live there, so I consider myself to be a Darfuri as well. As a child, I used to enjoy watching movies on television, particularly the ones that had female characters that were journalists. They seemed so empowered and independent – everything that I wanted to become someday. As a teenager, I began imitating those characters by writing for school magazines and newspapers. I eventually went to college to study journalism. In 2001, I graduated and started working for a local newspaper in the capital of Sudan.

Soon after that, genocide broke in Darfur, and my job suddenly gained an importance that I never expected. In 2004 I traveled to Darfur to cover the violence and the humanitarian crisis that were unfolding. It was a very risky assignment, but the news coming from the area was so restricted that I needed to travel to Darfur in order to understand what was happening. Why was the government attacking its own people? Why were Darfuris being pushed out of their villages and forced to live in IDP (Internally Displaced Person) camps? There were so many questions on my mind. At the time, the conflict was still considered a civil war, but it became more and more clear that it was, in fact, a genocide.  

I traveled through villages and visited IDP camps, where I interviewed many women. I heard shocking stories of women who had been raped by government-sponsored forces. Others told me that their children were violated. Many more were struggling to provide for their families after being uprooted from their homes and moved into camps, where they did not have access to basic needs – such as education, health assistance, and security. The stories that I heard stayed with me. I was so touched that after the trip I decided to focus my career on women’s rights and human rights issues.

This decision soon got me into trouble. Every time that I wrote an article or column on the topic of violence against women, members of the Sudanese Security Services would take me into an interrogation room, question my reporting and motivations, and at times even detain me for a few days. It became clear that the government of Sudan did not want local journalists writing about what violence against women, particularly women in Darfur. Probably because often the perpetrators of such violence were army officers or members of government-supported militia groups. Through intimidation, they were trying to force me to write about other issues, that would not damage the government’s image.

The pressure intensified in 2011, when I wrote about Safiya Ishaq for the independent newspaper Al-Jareeda. Ms. Ishaq, a 24-year-old student-activist from Sudan University, was arrested for participating in a rally and handing out flyers. While in the custody of Sudanese Security Services, she was brutally beaten and repeatedly gang-raped. Her story evoked a lot of anger among Sudanese women and civil society leaders. I wrote a column praising her courage, requesting an investigation into her accusations and demanding accountability for the perpetrators.

The Sudanese government not only questioned me about my column, but also took me to court and unjustly charged me with the crime of “publishing false news”. A Sudanese court tried my case and ruled that I was guilty. A judge sentenced me to one month in jail, unless I paid a fine of 2,000 Sudanese pounds (US$ 300). Five other journalists were accused of the same crime at the time, but were released. Another female journalist was sentenced along with me, but she filed an appeal and was also released. I believe that I was particularly targeted because I have roots in Darfur – and the government does not look kindly on Darfuris.

I could have paid the fine, but I chose to go to jail because I wanted to show people that I was not afraid to stand up for rape victims. As a result, I was in Omdurman Women’s Prison for more than one month (my story even made international news headlines). While behind bars, I met many women who were suffering horrific human rights abuses. Those encounters inspired me to continue to write about women’s issues and human rights. I left prison even more convinced of the importance of my role as a journalist in Sudan and determined to continue my work.

My hope for the future is to further my education and upgrade my skills and knowledge. I already have a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Resolution and another in Gender and Governance from the Ahfad University for Women, but I still have so much to learn. I also want to continue to advocate for women’s rights through my writing. Many still do not know the daunting challenges that Sudanese women face on a daily basis. Women are denied quality education and healthcare, they are oppressed by the law, and frequently undermined by the Sudanese government and by society. Life is very difficult, even in areas where there is peace. Of course, in conflict areas the situation is much worse. Women suffer with the bombing of their homes and the death loved ones. And they live in constant fear of being raped by the Janjaweed (government militia).

I am so happy to speak with you. Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) does such a great job of developing strategies to support and empower women from Darfur. I also admire that you speak up about genocide and pressure the international community to take action. Sudanese women need advocates all around the world to provide them with strength and support. I am very proud of DWAG and the work you do, and I sincerely thank you for giving me the opportunity to contribute. I hope that your readers can support DWAG’s efforts to provide Darfuri women with opportunities for a better life.”

—

TAKE ACTION. Please join us in taking at least one action that will help end violence against women in Darfur:

• Raise awareness by sharing our campaign content on social media, using the hashtags #16Days and #StopRapeInDarfurNow.
• Tag United Nations on social media and demand accountability for the 2014 mass rape in Darfur. Share it with 10 people in your network. Use @UN on Twitter and @UnitedNations on Facebook.
• Donate to DWAG to support a rehabilitation center for women survivors of sexual violence in Darfur.
• Join our Rapid Response Network, a group of community members who are on standby to help us with campaigns and petitions.
• Send a solidarity message that we can share with our supporters and the women in Darfur: communication@darfurwomenaction.org.

It Was The Happiest Moment, and I Will Never Have it Back

“My name is  Aisha Khalil and I am currently living in an internally displaced person (IDP) camp in central Darfur. I am here because my life changed in July 2003, when I was only 10 years old. It was a beautiful sunny day in my village. It was a market day, which was always the best day of the week because my mom, dad, and grandmother would purchase all sorts of fruits and snacks for my siblings and me. In the evening, we gathered outside as they distributed our gifts. Grandmother told us stories under the moonlight and pointed out this one star that was higher than usual. She said it was a sign that it wasn’t going to rain much this year. We all laughed and asked how she knew such things. It was the happiest moment, and I will never have it back.

Around midnight, we heard shouting, then multiple gunshots, and then heavy shooting – which sounded just like heavy rain. Suddenly, the entire village was engulfed in flames. We were under attack by the Janjaweed (a government sponsored militia). It was terrifying and we all started running away from the fire. My mom told us to run as far as possible and went back to get my grandmother. Other villagers told us to keep going, that my mother would join us soon.

We kept running for most of the night. A few hours before dawn, someone in our group said that we should stop, find a place away from the road and get some sleep. I was very thirsty, but luckily a woman who looked just like my mother had a gallon of water that she had been carrying on her back. She gave each one of us a sip of water – but just a little, because there was a long road ahead of us and the water had to last. People started counting their family members, and I found that my youngest sister and brother were missing. I cried, and decided that I could not go ahead without them. I wanted to go back to the village to find them. But others in the group convinced me that there was no one left in the village, and that when we reached the city I would be reunited with my family.

I had no choice but to carry on. I cried almost every day but a woman from my village offered to be my mother until I found my family. I slept with her very night and she was very kind to me. We finally reached another village and I hoped that we could stay there, but it was not safe. There was news of attacks on nearby villages, which meant that the Janjaweed was close by. We were given food, water and a couple of donkeys, and continued in our journey. To our dismay, as soon as we left we were ambushed by Janjaweed soldiers. They beat us and took our food. Sadly, they also took two young women from our group aged 16 and 14. We never heard from them again.

After five days of passing countless villages in ashes, we finally reached Kalma Camp in South Darfur. People at the camp were very kind, and received us with warm greetings. The camp leader saw me and told everyone in the camp that there was a girl alone, who was looking for her family. After that, more than one hundred women came to me, assuming that I was their missing daughter. When they realized that I was not, they cried and hugged me. I realized that many families had been torn apart. My new mother and I stayed in the camp for one month, but there was no news of my family. We eventually moved to Abushok Camp for another two months. Again, several women came to see me, assuming that I was their missing daughter. And every time I hoped that one of them would be my missing mother.

I learned to swallow my pain, but I did not lose hope of reuniting with my family. Someone told me that there were many IDPs living in the city of Kabkabiya, and that there was a chance that my mother was there. When we arrived, the Janjaweed had occupied the city, and they were shooting everywhere. We had to hide for about a month in a nearby camp named Elsalaam. In the meantime, my new mother went around asking people if they heard of my mother or siblings. There was no news.

One day, my new mother fell ill and was taken to a hospital managed by Doctors Without Borders. She never came back, and I learned later that she had passed away. I was so sad and in deep pain. That kind woman had left her children with a sister to help me find my mother. I wished that I had died instead. Another family took care of me for a while, but the food ratio that they received was not enough for everyone, and their shelter was very small. Eventually they started asking other families if they could take me.

I went to live with a nice family of five – father, mother and three children – who had a house in the city. They had a daughter about my age and I lived in her room. She was very happy to have someone to play with. And I was happy because for the first time after leaving my village I was not in a camp. They became like family to me. They took me to a nearby school and bought me clothes. I never talked to them about my missing siblings and mother. They thought that the women who lived with me in the camp was my real mother. I wanted to tell them, but it was a very sad story and I was afraid that I would start crying all over again. So I just kept it to myself. But they noticed that I had trouble eating. Every time I looked at a plate of food, I would think of my family. Were they hungry? Were they dead or alive?

After three months, a woman knocked on the door and told us that my mother and two siblings had recently arrived in Abu Shok, and that they were looking for me. I was so happy that I couldn’t hold my tears. For the first time my host family learned that my family had been missing and cried with me. They arranged for me to travel to a camp near  El- Fashir city on an NGO car. When I arrived, I met with my mom and we cried for about two hours. She told me that my dad and brother were killed when our village was attacked. And that my grandmother had struggled with burns on her body, and also passed away.

After two weeks, my mother and I moved back into the camp to be near relatives. I brought my books with me because I wanted to go back to school in the camp. But my mother fell ill and was soon paralyzed due to trauma.  I was only 12 years old, but I had to take on the role of raising my youngest brothers, who were 5 and 7. Today I am 23 years old and I am grateful that I could help them to grow. However, I wish that I was given the opportunity to finish my education.

I still live in the camp and I work to organize women to support each other. Life in the camps is hard. There is no security. Women are raped every day and many more are living with severe trauma. There is no medical treatment or any kind of support for them. I have also recently adopted two children whose mother was raped and shot to death. It will not be easy, but I will raise them and I hope that they will grow and find education.

My message to world  is that women in Darfur are strong and kind, and if they are free they can do much for their families. We need protection, education and support – especially for the ones who have been devastated by rape. Please tell the world that Darfur is still burning, that most men were killed and the women are left to suffer. Please share my story and tell everyone not to forget about us. I have long wanted to share my story. Thank you Darfur Women Action Group for giving me a voice.”

—

TAKE ACTION. Please join us in taking at least one action that will help end violence against women in Darfur:

• Raise awareness by sharing our campaign content on social media, using the hashtags #16Days and #StopRapeInDarfurNow.
• Tag United Nations on social media and demand accountability for the 2014 mass rape in Darfur. Share it with 10 people in your network. Use @UN on Twitter and @UnitedNations on Facebook.
• Donate to DWAG to support a rehabilitation center for women survivors of sexual violence in Darfur.
• Join our Rapid Response Network, a group of community members who are on standby to help us with campaigns and petitions.
• Send a solidarity message that we can share with our supporters and the women in Darfur: communication@darfurwomenaction.org.

#GivingTuesday is a global day of giving that brings diverse organizations and communities around the world together to give back. Our team is pleased to invite you to take this opportunity to engage in something meaningful for you and others. Donate to Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) and help us to make a difference in the lives of women and girls from Darfur. Help us to amplify their voices and give them hope.

Darfur Women Action Group will allocate your donation to a women rehabilitation center to be built in Darfur. The center will support and empower women who have been subjected to sexual violence and oppression. The goal is to enable these women to heal and give them the skills needed to reintegrate themselves into their communities, where they can inspire positive change.

We, therefore, wanted to reach out to you and ask for your support on this special day, and give you an opportunity to make a difference in other people’s lives – those who have not been so fortunate. Please donate to Darfur Women Action Group and be a part of our fight against the long-standing genocide and attacks against women in Darfur and around the globe.

Follow our social media channels and join our #16Days campaign for more action opportunities

Thank you for your support,

Niemat Ahmadi
DWAG’s President

& Darfur Women Action Group’s Team

Between Unspeakable Suffering and Outstanding Resilience

“I lived in a beautiful village in Darfur surrounded by tall acacia trees. Towards the west there was a green valley named Azum that provided us with mango, guavas, oranges, and beautiful gardens for six months during the rainy season. Toward the east there were sugarcane farms. I considered everyone in my village to be rich. Through hard work they cultivated all types of grains, vegetables and fruits. They also raised goats, sheep and cows. Most people had what they needed to survive and only went to the market to buy clothes, soap and sugar. Everyone was very friendly and supportive. If you needed help building a house, the community would come together and finish the house in one day. Life was beautiful and I was very happy.

One day in 2003 an army came to my village early morning when I was in the valley feeding cows. At the time I was 24 years old, married, and had four children. They came on camels, horses and land cruisers, carrying heavy artillery. I could hear them chanting, shooting and setting houses on fire. It was very frightening. I realized that it must be the Sudanese Government Army and the Janjaweed (government supported militia), because we knew of nearby villages that had been attacked by them. I thought of sending my cows away so that the men could not take them. Or hiding among the animals so that the men would not see me.

Eventually my three brothers, my uncle, and his two sons came running to rescue me. But before they could reach me, the killers shot them right in front of my eyes. After this brutal killing, the militiamen came close to me and ordered that I lie down. I refused and threw stones at them, bringing one of them down. In retaliation, they shot me in the back, forced me to the ground, and raped me repeatedly, until I was unconscious. When I woke up, I was bleeding. I pretended to be dead until night came and the men left.

After they were gone, I got up and went in search of my kids. As I reached the village, I suddenly realized that I was stepping on dead bodies. The armed men had killed or wounded almost everyone that they encountered. More than one thousand people were killed on that day. I found an injured fellow that I knew and he told me that my children had been taken to the forest to hide and that I would be able to find my kids there.

I was guided to the right spot and we were finally reunited after two days. Now that we were all together, we had to get away from the killers. So we walked for three days to another village. My wounds were still bleeding and I had to carry my youngest child on my back. Finally, we approached a community where some people gave us a mixture of millet flour and water to alleviate our hunger. They also tried to stop my bleeding using traditional medicine. We had to be prepared for a longer walk to a refugee camp in Chad.

We reached Chad after a month of walking and unimaginable suffering. I often doubted that I would survive to see another day, but something deep in my heart was telling me that I would. I decided not to surrender, even when I felt exhaustion, thirst and hunger. Or when I was overwhelmed by sadness, thinking of the genocide perpetrators’ intent to humiliate and exterminate us.

In the camp, I was lucky to receive medical treatment from international NGOs. And after six months, I was finally reunited with my husband. Since the attack to our village, he had been missing. I learned that he had been seriously wounded and was in a remote village in Darfur. I notified the International Rescue Committee and, thankfully, they found him and brought him to Chad. When he arrived, I could barely recognize him. Due to his injuries, he became permanently physically disabled.

Life in the camp seemed safe, but when I started speaking up about what had happened to me, I was targeted to be killed. The Sudanese Government had infiltrated the camps with spies and they did not want victims speaking about the attacks to international organizations. So I eventually had to be transferred with my family to Kenya, Burkina Faso and, finally, to the United States.

In Houston, Texas, we found a new home and a new life with loving people. But when I was sent for further health treatment, I was told that my body had been severely injured by the shooting, and that I would never be able to work. It was hard to believe, but I didn’t let it shake my confidence of myself nor the mission that I had decided to accomplish in life. I was determined to be productive and optimistic, no matter what! Now that I was living safely in the United States, I wanted to go to school, get a degree, and be a fluent English speaker. I had never been to school in Sudan, because it was not considered safe for girls to go walk to school – only boys.

I am happy to say that in the last four years, I finished an ESL (English as a Second Language) course, successfully did an ACT (American College Testing) test, and I am currently working on my GED (General Education Diploma) to be able to go to college. I am doing great in my classes and remain a distinguished student, in spite of my multiple responsibilities and health situation. My children are in college and working evening jobs to support our family – from paying rent to other costs. They also play sports and are top ranking students in their schools. I have also been able to give birth to two more healthy children. Because we have been targeted for elimination, I wanted more children to overcome the loss of our people.

My plan for the future is to continue to speak up for myself and other women, fight against genocide, write a book, and study law to be able to pursue justice for me and my people.

I thank Darfur Women Action Group for giving me a voice. I would like to appeal to all of you who read my story to do whatever you can to speak up for the victims of the long-standing genocide and particularly for the women who have been victimized. I call on you to not feel discouraged by the fact that the world has failed the women of Darfur. If we all speak in one voice, we can compel the international community to act to end the genocide in Darfur, and the suffering of women elsewhere in the world.”

—

TAKE ACTION. Please join us in taking at least one action that will help end violence against women in Darfur:

• Raise awareness by sharing our campaign content on social media, using the hashtags #16Days and #StopRapeInDarfurNow.
• Tag United Nations on social media and demand accountability for the 2014 mass rape in Darfur. Share it with 10 people in your network. Use @UN on Twitter and @UnitedNations on Facebook.
• Donate to DWAG to support a rehabilitation center for women survivors of sexual violence in Darfur.
• Join our Rapid Response Network, a group of community members who are on standby to help us with campaigns and petitions.
• Send a solidarity message that we can share with our supporters and the women in Darfur: communication@darfurwomenaction.org.

From November 25th to December 10th (International Human Rights Day), Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) will be participating in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence Campaign – a worldwide initiative to bring awareness to violence against women and girls. We want to take this opportunity to shed light on the long-standing genocidal attacks against women in Darfur, and to recognize the courage of these women in the face of mass atrocities. These women have been through unspeakable suffering and have demonstrated outstanding resilience. To participate in our campaign, share our LEARN and LISTEN messages on social media to bring awareness about this issue (Facebook and Twitter) and TAKE ACTION to help the women in Darfur.

THIS IS IMPORTANT.

Since 2003, violent attacks, rape, arrests and torture have devastated the lives of the innocent civilians of Darfur. Countless men, women, and children lost their lives or were forced to endure unimaginable suffering. Women and girls have been frequently targeted for sexual violence, and are often left to suffer in silence.
Sudanese President al-Bashir is the mastermind behind the genocide in Darfur and is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) – he has been indicted with 10 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The ICC also found evidence that rape is being used as a genocidal tool – to oppress and humiliate the Darfuri people. Regrettably, al-Bashir is still actively pursuing his genocidal policy in Darfur and other regions of Sudan, and continues to victimize women.

Even though the situation in Darfur is progressively more alarming, and violence continues to rise at an alarming rate, world leaders have faced the situation in Darfur with silence. Those who have spoken up have not moved beyond words of condemnation. Similarly, the mainstream media has not treated Darfur with the urgency that it deserves, failing to cover the current situation. The ongoing genocide is no longer making headlines at prominent newspapers such as the New York Times or the Washington Post, as it had in the past.

Since it is not in the news, the world may think that the crisis in Darfur has ended. But the reality is quite the opposite. Over 460,000 Darfuris were displaced in 2013, another 500,000 were displaced in 2014, and over 233,000 people were displaced in the first quarter of 2015. Many Darfuri now live in internally displaced and refugee camps in Sudan and Chad – where the overwhelming majority, about 80-95%, are women and children.

At the same time, rape continues to be a systematic tactic and deliberate policy of the regime, who uses it as a weapon of war and intimidation. In one day alone on October 31st, 2014, 221 women and girls were raped in Tabit village. The perpetrators have suffered no consequences and have yet to be investigated by the United Nations. Those who dare to speak up against the attacks on women (women’s rights activists, civil society leaders and human rights defenders) have been subject to arrest and derogatory treatment by oppressive Sudanese government authorities.

WE NEED YOU, YOUR VOICE, AND YOUR SUPPORT.

This pressing issue has helped us realized that we need to reach out to supporters for help. We need to mobilize the masses to shed light on this dire situation and take further action towards tangible change. Remember, it only takes one person for positive change to begin. Darfur Women Action Group will remain vigilant and refuse to condone the silence of the international community. We say NO to the silent conspiracy on Darfur and YES to empowering survivors and ordinary citizens to speak up.

WILL YOU JOIN US IN OUR #16DAYS CAMPAIGN?

LEARN.
Let’s make an effort to understand the situation in Darfur, the ongoing genocide and how it affects women and girls.

LISTEN.
Let’s read and share stories of Darfuri women, their suffering and outstanding resilience.

TAKE ACTION.
Lastly, please join us in taking at least one action that will help end violence against women in Darfur:

• Raise awareness by sharing our campaign content on social media, using the hashtags #16Days and #StopRapeInDarfurNow.

• Tag United Nations on social media and demand accountability for the 2014 mass rape in Darfur. Share it with 10 people in your network. Use @UN on Twitter and @UnitedNations on Facebook.

• Donate to DWAG to support a rehabilitation center for women survivors of sexual violence in Darfur.

• Join our Rapid Response Network, a group of community members who are on standby to help us with campaigns and petitions.

• Send a solidarity message that we can share with our supporters and the women in Darfur: communication@darfurwomenaction.org.

 

Education and Action

By Nick Cabrejos

The 5th Annual National Symposium on Women and Genocide was a four-day long event put together by Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) and partners between October 21-24, with the goal to discuss violence against women in genocide-stricken areas around the world, such as Darfur, in Sudan. The first two days of the event took place at the New York Presbyterian Avenue Church in Washington D.C., and featured a series of panels with survivors and experts. After being exposed to such important issues, students spent the following two days learning how to lobby on Capitol Hill to pressure government representatives to speak up against mass atrocities.

The advocacy training began on Sunday, October 23rd, in a room at the George Washington University full of eager high school and college students

from all over the United States. An opening presentation by Carl Wilkens, the only American to stay in Rwanda after the genocide had begun, showed the attendees that there exists a ray of hope in the face of atrocities. A virtual reality video documentary of the Burmese Rohingya crisis put us all in the shoes of the oppressed, and we used this new knowledge as inspiration for the training that would begin shortly after. After the eye-opening documentary, students with previous lobbying experience led lobbying training sessions. The training was coordinated by DWAG’s partner organization STAND (The student-led movement to end mass atrocities).

On Monday, October 24th, we made the trip to Capitol Hill at 9am, and after getting lost in the underground tunnels, I finally found the group hanging out at the Dunkin Donuts Express. I was part of the team that would lobby the offices of politicians from Virginia about the genocide in Darfur and its impact on women. In the same team was David Albogh, a very inspiring member of the Darfur Interfaith Network who has been attending DWAG’s symposiums for the last 4 consecutive years to speak for the people of Sudan.

Together we visited Senator Tim Kaine’s office, and although some of us were a bit nervous (since it was our first time lobbying), we had a great conversation with Senator Kaine’s aides. They were very welcoming. Overall our experience on Capitol Hill was very educational and empowering, and we found that if you go into it with a friendly and assertive attitude, then there is really nothing to be worried about.

Like our experienced team-member Cory Williams who for years has been doing this told us, “they are here to serve us” – so we should not let our nervousness overwhelm us.

I would highly encourage everyone to learn about the advocacy process and to meet with like-minded people in order to be a voice for the issues most important to them. We need to be determined to bring the causes that we care about to our policymakers’ attention. I am hoping to do it again and encourage you to join future DWAG events to educate yourselves and take action.

Stories of Suffering and Resilience Take Center Stage

By Carla Ruas

Nadia Taha was only a schoolgirl when her native Darfur changed before her eyes. Typically, local villages in western Sudan were tight-knit, in close contact with nature and always at ease. But in 2003, the Sudanese government, led by President al-Bashir, began a campaign of mass killings of the Darfuri people, slaughtering entire communities with aerial bombs and armed militia raids. Thousands of civilians were killed, women were gang-raped, and many more Darfuris were forced to abandon their homes and flee into the desert. Ms. Taha’s family fled to El Fasher, a city in North Darfur. Due to the city’s size, it was supposed to be safer than their small, unprotected village. But fighting broke out there, too. Ms. Taha’s brother went missing and many immediate family members were killed. The trauma of death and loss made her mother physically ill and she passed away. “I was just in high school, and seeing my mom’s health deteriorating every day was a heartbreaking experience. The loss of my mom is a tragedy that has changed my life forever.”

Ms. Taha, now a successful journalist in the United States, shared these painful memories during the 5th Annual Symposium on Women and Genocide: The Case of Darfur, which took place in Washington, DC, between October 21-24. Yearly, the event has attracted speakers and attendees from all over the world who are committed to the study and prevention of genocide and violence against women in conflict areas. This year, the first two days of the event featured a series of panels with survivors and experts in the ballroom of the New York Presbyterian Avenue Church in Washington D.C. , while the following days were dedicated to advocacy training and lobbying on Capitol Hill.

Ms. Taha spoke on the very first panel of the symposium, “Women’s Resilience in the Face of Genocide and Mass Atrocities,” which also featured survivors from Rwanda, Burma, Congo and Nigeria. At one point she confessed to the audience that this was the first time that she was sharing her story. And as she made this surprising admission, she could not hold back the tears that ran down her cheeks. It was a difficult opening panel for the almost 100 attendees to watch. However, Darfur Women Action Group’s (DWAG) president, Niemat Ahmadi, later revealed that it was not a coincidence that the survivors’ accounts were scheduled first. Their accounts of pain and resilience set the stage for the thought-provoking panels that followed – featuring academics, activists and aid workers.

Daniel Rothbart, professor of Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the George Mason University, was one of the speakers who attempted to unravel the survivors’ traumatic experiences. In the panel “Genocide in the 21st Century,” he explained the concept of genocide. It is well-known that genocide is a crime of long duration and involving mass atrocities. But not everyone realizes that genocidal violence can take many forms. “There are visible and invisible types of violence. Some are well-known, such as violence used to punish the body and traumatize the mind. But there are others, such as verbal and cultural violences,” Prof. Rothbart explained. “These are a set of social institutions that promote stark inequality between segments of the population in order to subjugate a certain group, not much different from the Jim Crow laws that segregated the United States,” he noted.

In such an environment, women and girls are susceptible to yet another type of violence – systematic, ritualized rape and sexual exploitation, according to Elisa von Joeden-Forgey, Director of the Master of Arts in Holocaust and Genocide Studies Program at Stockton University, who spoke at the same panel. An expert on the topic of gender and genocide, Ms. von Joeden-Forgey reminded the audience that violence against women and girls is one of many elements in a genocide’s multi-pronged strategy of attack. “Genocide is a crime that targets reproduction. It is a crime of reproductive violence,” she stated. “The goal is to destroy the life foundations of a particular group that is being persecuted.”

How to end such systematic atrocities? For Maureen Murphy, Senior Research Associate at George Washington University’s Global Women’s Institute (GWI), the first step is to gather more data about genocide. During the panel “Strategies for Women’s Empowerment,” she described how organizations can use research to prove that genocide is taking place (or has taken place), and that women are systematically targets of sexual violence. At the moment, there are few reliable studies on genocide, particularly on the topic of violence against women and girls. Almost no research has been conducted in Darfur, for instance, due to the difficulty of accessing the area. But in South Sudan, where some evidence has been collected, data indicate that rape and sexual assault from non-partners have increased during periods of conflict. “Violence against women is used as a weapon of war and [these women] remain affected by this violence throughout their lives.”

With this type of evidence, organizations could pressure world leaders to speak up against such atrocities and to allocate resources for prevention programs. Too frequently, the international community refrains from any type of intervention by stating that there is no proof that genocide is taking place. During the Rwandan genocide, for instance, the United States refused to take a leading role and even discouraged a robust UN response. More recently, throughout the Darfur genocide, President Barack Obama has strategically avoided using the “G word,” so that it is not pressured to intervene. Other powerful countries have used the same argument and stayed silent as the atrocities in Sudan have unfolded.

Honorable Senator Mobina Jaffer, a leading Canadian politician on human rights and an accomplished women’s leader, delivered the keynote address at the symposium, in which she touched on the international community’s limited response to end mass atrocities around the world. “The international community has constantly used an ineffective approach to conflicts. Even when governments do come into a crisis situation, they leave before the job is finished. That is exactly what happened to Darfur,” she said. The Senator served as Canada’s Special Envoy for Peace in Sudan from 2002 to 2006 and became deeply engaged with the area. She is now hopeful that a joint effort by politicians and activists could be the key to ending Darfuris’ suffering. “We politicians cannot do it on our own. We do not have the knowledge of activists, but we are able to access resources. So we need to work as a team,” she said.

Accountability for perpetrators, reparations to survivors, and legal justice are also needed. Mona Khalil, legal adviser at the Independent Diplomat, reminded attendees that Sudanese President al-Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2009 for genocide, but has never been arrested and continues to rule Sudan. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) referred the situation to the ICC, but did not support the court in proceeding on the matter. The United Nations (UN) General Assembly and individual member states with political leverage in the region also refused to use their ties to make a difference. The ultimate message is that genocide is not an easily punishable crime – and one can get away with it. But there is good news, says Ms. Khalil: “As humans and activists, we can alter that dynamic by raising the cost of silence,” she noted in the panel “Accountability for Genocide and Crimes Against Women.”

As the the first two days of the symposium (and the panels) came to an end, it became clear that the blending of real-life experiences and theoretical ideas was a success. Survivors shared their stories, academics and experts gained feedback on their research findings, and advocates were energized to continue their plight against genocide and mass atrocities. The symposium also brought attention back to Darfur and the forgotten but still ongoing genocide. And it gave attendees hope that if we can bring so many different people together against genocide in one room, then we can work collectively toward accountability and prevention. Ending genocide is possible.

For part 2 of this blog click here.