Sexual violence weapon of war in Sudan conflict

By Omer Faruk Madanoglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - Parties involved in the civil war in Sudan since April 2023 often use sexual assault and violence as a weapon of war.

Mona Rishmawi, a member of the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Sudan, commented on reports of sexual assault against women in Sudan during an interview with Anadolu.

Rishmawi stated that due to the conflict, many women have become refugees and numerous women have also been forced to travel to other countries alone because their husbands were killed.

Sudanese women have frequently been displaced and face various dangers during their journeys, she said.

"There is a lot of disappearances also that is taking place. They don't know the fate of their loved ones. They moved multiple times inside and outside," she said.

Rishmawi added that families often have many children, and women are left to care for them alone.

Women who lost husbands in the conflict face harsh conditions, with their families and lives being shattered, she noted.

- Women hide sexual assaults to avoid stigma

Rishmawi said violations against women in the conflict are widespread that are reported to the UN mission.

She detailed that women face sexual assault while fleeing displacement and those detained during migration also suffer sexual violence.

Emphasizing women and girls are targeted and punished due to their roles in society, she said, "Sudanese women who tried to help others in need have also faced sexual assault."

Rishmawi reported that women hide sexual assaults to avoid stigma.

"It's very difficult to assess the numbers because, you know, in our culture, there is a lot of stigma around sexual violence. There is a lot the families don't like to talk about women and girls -- don't like to talk about it."

Survivors of sexual assault are ostracized by society, which tends to blame the victim rather than the perpetrator, she added.

Rishmawi said female survivors of sexual assault suffer health deterioration due to pressures.

"It's very much against our culture. It's very much against our Islamic culture. It's very much against our tradition and so but women are used as a weapon of war.

"Unfortunately, even when I interviewed strong women and listened to their stories, they hesitate to speak about sexual assault. Political leaders must issue directives and statements declaring this unacceptable and ensure perpetrators are brought to justice. This war against women and their bodies must end," she added.

- Health care system collapsed

Rishmawi said the health care system in Sudan has collapsed because of the conflict, with hospitals bombed and rendered unusable.

She noted that health workers have had to leave the country, causing disruptions in the health care system.

Access to basic health care services is extremely difficult for women, with families having to find doctors through their own efforts, she added.

Rishmawi noted that due to limited access to hospitals, interventions for women's health issues are very challenging.

"I don't want to go in details about it, but there are complications, physical complications of this, and therefore we know from the health providers that they've been sought by now by many families to assist in this situation. So, yes, there is health care, but this actually is not as organized as it should be, because the health system has collapsed in the conflict zones," she said.

Rishmawi said enslaving Sudanese women for sexual purposes is under investigation, but no conclusions have been reached.

- Civil war in Sudan

In Sudan, the power struggle between the army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary has continued for 16 months since the fall of Omar al-Bashir’s 30-year rule following a popular uprising against the civilian government.

The conflict, which began in April 2023, has the army controlling the north and east, while the RSF is influential in the west and south.

Peace talks mediated by Saudi Arabia and the US in Jeddah, regional peace initiatives led by Egypt, efforts by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in East Africa and discussions in Bahrain have all ended without resolution.

More than 18,800 people have died in the conflict, around 10 million have been displaced and over 25 million are in need of humanitarian aid, according to the UN.​​​​​​​