10/05/2004

The government of Sudan’s attempt to stabilize the security conditions in Darfur is a failure. In his briefing to the Security Council on October 5, Special Representative of the Secretary General Jan Pronk stated, “There was no systematic improvement of people’s security and no progress on ending impunity [in the past month].”  Increased police presence has not stopped abductions, rapes and attacks against the civilian population displaced to camps by the ongoing violence. Instead, internally displaced persons consistently report that increased police presence, brought in as reinforcements from Khartoum to create safe areas under the “Darfur Plan of Action,” has actually resulted in greater violence against civilians. Only a political settlement will end the violence, but in the short term a stronger mandate for African Union peace monitors could increase protection of civilians.

The Darfur Plan of Action, hammered out in August 2004 by SRSG Pronk, and the Government of Sudan, targeted special areas for the deployment of mobile police teams. Increased security presence was provided for villages within 20 km of towns with high concentrations of internally displaced persons in specified areas of North, West and South Darfur. But the buildup of government security personnel in these so-called “safe areas” has caused a counter-buildup of rebel forces, thus actually increasing the probability of clashes.

Victims of the violence in Darfur, displaced to these “safe areas” in North Darfur, report that increased police presence has brought increased violence, in particular, sexual and gender based violence against women. They accuse the police of being in league with the government-supported Janjaweed militias and even recruiting some Janjaweed into their ranks. A group of internally displaced women in Abushouk camp, just outside of El Fasher in North Darfur, told Refugees International of new cases of rapes of women out gathering firewood several miles from the camp.  A woman in the camp said:  “The police have a base inside of the camp boundaries. We want the camp to be fenced, with the police base outside. We do not trust them. They are the same people who forced us from our homes.”

On September 21, in Zam Zam, an IDP camp a few miles down the road from Abushouk, a 14-year-old girl was gang raped by uniformed soldiers at a checkpoint. She had been traveling to the market with her little brother before being attacked.

The following week, on September 28, 10 women who had been out collecting firewood were held at a police checkpoint in El Fasher from 5:30 pm until 7:00 pm, well after sunset, in an area known for armed attacks and banditry.  Fifteen minutes after the women were released, they were attacked along the road to Zam Zam by armed and uniformed men, whom they referred to as “Janjaweed.” One 14-year-old girl was raped, and a 15-year-old was wounded with a knife. Five other women were abducted. As of September 30, two women were still missing.  The families of the abducted women protested against the police in Zam Zam, accusing them of deliberately placing the women in danger. The protests lead to clashes between the police and the displaced. Two policemen were treated for injuries.

After a visit to Darfur, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, said of displaced persons: “At best they feel the authorities respond inadequately to their concerns, and at worst that they are in collusion with their abusers, including armed groups and militias generally described as Janjaweed.”

In response to the displaced population’s lack of confidence in the authorities, the UN has begun training police in the rule of law. Local women are also being trained in monitoring and reporting of rape and gender-based violence. Jordan has offered police units to provide six weeks of training in each of the Darfur states to establish a family protection unit.

The UN is also calling for a change of Sudan’s criminal code governing rape. Under Article 48 a woman cannot receive medical treatment until she has filed a complaint with the police. This is in violation of international human rights standards and makes women more vulnerable. Women don’t trust the police and accuse them of often refusing to accept rape complaints.  They also say that the police sometimes accuse the rape survivor of adultery, an offense under Islamic Sharia law. A government minister of Culture and Social Welfare recently stated in El Fasher that as there were no charges of rape recorded at the police station, there could not be any rapes in North Darfur. She maintained that any women who might be pregnant must have committed adultery and should go to jail, with their children placed in an orphanage in Khartoum.  

The UN supports a broader mandate for the African Union forces to monitor the activities of the police forces in camps for internally displaced persons. But carrying out this mandate will only be possible if the AU forces are increased rapidly from the current 300 to the 3,500 troops now agreed to by the government of Sudan. While this action may bring more protection to the camp residents, the internally displaced are wary of soldiers. “A soldier is a soldier. We do not want them in the camps,” one said. “We prefer for them to be outside.”

Some senior Sudanese officials have made statements accepting the idea of a broader mandate for the AU forces, but until the force is approved and the mandate defined precisely no one should be confident that progress towards protecting civilians will be made. In the meantime, impunity remains the order of the day in Darfur, with disastrous consequences for the displaced.

Refugees International therefore recommends that:

• The African Union Peace and Security Council authorize as quickly as possible an expanded AU force with a clear mandate for civilian protection.
• International donor governments, including the United States, support the expedited deployment of this force through the provision of funds and logistics.
• The government of Sudan amend Article 48 of the Sudan Criminal Code to allow rape victims to receive medical treatment without first filing a police complaint.
• The government of Sudan implement the UN Development Program’s rule of law project for police authorities and follow through on the recommendations from training sessions. In particular, the police chiefs in all three districts of Darfur should accept the offer of Jordanian police trainers to help establish a Family Protection Unit within each district.
• The government of Sudan establish a proper reporting mechanism for rape, which takes into account victims’ rights and confidentiality, and ensure that this is respected by the police.
• The government of Sudan fulfill its commitment to disarm pro-government militias and ensure that its police forces act within the boundaries of the rule of law and protect civilians. Police who perpetrate human right abuses should be prosecuted and brought to justice.

RI advocates Sarah Martin and Mamie Mutchler are reviewing security conditions in the Darfur region of Sudan.