Since the outbreak of armed clashes between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, on April 15, nearly 3.000 people have been killed and 2.2 million others have been displaced. As consequence of this conflict, several civil organizations issued reports about sexual assaults, especially in the capital, Khartoum, and the Darfur region, the two regions that witness the most violent fights.
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It is still difficult to know the number of victims of sexual violence so far, but Sudanese doctors fear that many of them are not reported. The head of the Combating Violence Against Women Unit (CVAW) in Sudan, Salima Ishaq, says that there are “36 documented cases of sexual violence related to women in the capital, Khartoum, while the Darfur region recorded 25 cases, and what has been documented represents only two percent of all that happens due to poor services and difficulty in movement.” “.
According to Isaac, the Unit for Combating Violence against Women suffers from the obstacles facing Sudanese survivors, which contribute to the lack of access to medical assistance, in addition to the scarcity of agencies that can provide them with support. She added, “The unit is trying to access and document cases through eyewitnesses and available data, especially with the worsening situation of women due to the war and the cessation of services provided to these groups after the closure of hospitals and some of them being out of service.”
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The head of CVAW describes the health situation as “catastrophic”, especially as women in nine Sudanese states suffer from a crisis of treatment, food security and poor infrastructure.
Ishaq considered that “many cases of rape are not reported for fear of its social repercussions” pointing out that “the CVAW does not provide direct services, but tries to coordinate the provision of health support through civil society and with the help of individuals.” Specialists provide psychological support over the phone if the survivor agrees, as some of them do not want any kind of communication.”
A member of the “Emergency Lawyers” in Sudan, Abdul Khaleq Al-Nuwairi, considered, in turn, that “rape is a terrible and dangerous crime, and in takes a very violent form during wars.”. He said “since the outbreak of battles in Sudan, sexual assaults have occurred on girls. According to him “unlike the numbers mentioned in doctors’ reports, children under 18 years old and women were raped “.
Both isaac and Nuwairi explained that, “There are cases that have not been disclosed because they are related to culture and custom in society for fear of shame and scandal, so the declaration and recognition of the facts is ambiguous and covered up, which affects determining the number of victims and revealing the real numbers.”
Al-Nuweiri indicated that “rape is classified as a crime against humanity as stated in the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, as well as the Sudanese Criminal Code of 1991 stipulating the death penalty for the perpetrator, in addition to the Child Law of 2010, in addition to the existence of several treaties and charters drawn up by the United Nations, and other bodies that have been Created to prevent and protect women and girls from sexual abuse during conflicts and wars. He appealed to organizations working in the field of human rights to intervene and save the situation so that violations do not continue and cases of rape increase, especially after the presence of victims of children of both sexes under 12 years of age, which is a great threat to Sudanese society.
