BLOG

Today, nearly four years after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended over 26 years of brutal civil war, southern Sudan continues to be a place of acute poverty and underdevelopment.  Juba, the capital of the south, is a town consisting of ramshackle, hastily put together homes and a steady stream of goats and dust through what could charitably be considered streets. With just 10 miles of paved roads in an area roughly the size of France, movement is difficult and development is slow to materialize, as we saw during our assessment mission to the region in November. 

Despite the lack of roads or other infrastructure, hundreds of thousands of people are returning to southern Sudan after decades of war. They are not finding much to come home to. Refugees International has already documented the needs of returnees. But on my recent mission, I learned more about increasing gender based violence as families return to Sudan under extremely stressful conditions. Women in southern Sudan endure extreme restrictions on their freedom of movement, a constraint often imposed by husbands or fathers in a society where the male head of the household has the final say.  Domestic violence is also highly prevalent, and rarely challenged.

One aid worker told us about some of the programs taking place throughout southern Sudan to help reduce the incidents of domestic violence.  They have established counseling and sensitivity training for families that helps teach men what kinds of behaviors lead to domestic violence and more peaceful measures for controlling their stress and anger. Many women expressed that their lives were a little easier after their husbands were involved in these trainings.

Helping resolve issues of gender-based violence in the south is just one of the ways southern Sudan can begin to move towards stability and recovery. The new Congress and administration should work towards increasing efforts that prevent violence against women during and after conflict. This includes strengthening local women’s organizations that assist survivors and providing educational and economic opportunities for survivors.

Legislation like the International Violence Against Women Act will help provide women with these kinds of opportunities. Help us spread the word about this important legislation by going to our action center and asking your representative to co-sponsor and support this legislation.

--Vanessa Parra