SOUTH DARFUR VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: UN AND NGOS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 000756

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/SPG, DRL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2016
TAGS: PGOV KWMN PHUM SU
SUBJECT: SOUTH DARFUR VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: UN AND NGOS
VIEWS

REF: KHARTOUM 755

Classified By: Charge a.i. Andrew Steinfeld, Reason: Section 1.4 (b) an
d (d)


1. (SBU) Summary: On March 19, Charge Steinfeld traveled to
Nyala to urge local government officials to implement the
Plan of Action (reftel). While in Nyala, the UN and NGOs
briefed the Charge on the status of violence against women
(VAW),highlighting that the State Committee had done little
to halt its prevalence. Furthermore, severe deficiencies
remain in reporting, recording, and prosecuting cases. End
Summary.

UN and International NGOs VAW Briefing
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2. (C) UNMIS representative, Huma Kon, told Charge that,
although there was high-level representation on the State
Committee to Combat GBV, there was a lack of implementation
on the ground. She added that in the last four months UNMIS
had registered over one hundred cases of GBV, and in
Menawashi town alone there were about fifty cases; however,
the police had registered only one case of rape there. Kon
added that it was the responsibility of the victim to bring
proof of rape to the police for investigations. Stephanie
Swartz, representative of the United Nations International
Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF),added that one third of
GBV survivors are under the age of eighteen, and that there
is sexual exploitation taking place within internally
displaced persons (IDP) camps. While rape by the Janjaweed
is acceptable to discuss, rape within the camps is still a
taboo subject, she said. Gladdis Antiga, United Nations Food
and Population Agency (UNFPA) representative, added that the
use of Form 8 places health providers in the precarious
position of determining whether or not a rape had occurred;
only violent rape could be proven medically. The
representative from Medecins du Monde (MDM) commented that if
a victim could not prove rape, she could then be prosecuted
for illegal pregnancy or adultery. The representatives
raised the December 23 case in Kass town of a woman who was
raped by a member of the military who had left his military
ID at the scene of the crime. The police were reluctant to
investigate the case, and did not register it. After the UN
followed up the cases, the judge ordered the officer's
arrest; however, the military refuses to process the case.

Local NGO,s in Nyala
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3. (C) The Charge also met with three local organizations
working with GBV victims, the Amal Center, Bakita
Organization, and the Good Will Organization. The Amal
Center assists GBV victims by providing legal aid and
registering their cases with the police. The representative
stated that they had filed at least fifty cases of rape in
2005 and are representing four girls charged with murder
during an attempted rape by militia men in uniform. Women
face many obstacles when reporting a case to the police, such
as ridicule by the police officers and lack of investigation
of government-affiliated perpetrators. The representative
from Baketa Organization said that the State Committee to
Combat GBV was not active and did not involve or consult with
civil society. The representative from the Good Will
Organization said that the IDP's had no confidence in the
African Union, because it only monitors and reports, rather
than seeking to prevent sexual assaults. Overall, the local
representatives did not believe the State Committee to Combat
Violence Against Women was currently effective.


4. (SBU) Comment: Post is monitoring the case of the four
girls charged with murder during an attempted rape and the
case of the military man accused of rape. Poloff contacted
Dr. Attiyat, head of the Committee to Combat Violence Against
Women in Sudan, who said that she would speak with the Under
Secretary of Justice about the murder case.

SIPDIS
STEINFELD