2009 Security is deployed to protect some of the larger groups of displaced people in Sudan. (Reuters : Zohra Bensemra)
Last month the RFK Center for Justice & Human Rights and the California International Law Center at UC Davis School of Law released a new report on the conflict in Sudan. The report analyzes the key transitional justice issues that Darfuris will be faced with once the conflict and violence ends.
On March 23, the RFK Center launched the report with a panel featuring RFK Human Rights Laureate Dr. Mohammed Ahmed Abdallah Eisa; Diane Marie Amann, Director of the California International Law Center at UC Davis School of Law and Monika Kalra Varma, Director of the RFK Center for Human Rights.
The report, Toward Peace with Justice in Darfur: A Framework for Accountability, was envisioned by Dr. Mohammed, who was the 2007 recipient of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award. Dr. Mohammed is a physician and former Professor of Medicine at el-Fasher University in Darfur, specializing in the treatment of survivors of torture and sexual violence.
“This report is a response to the Darfuri people’s call for peace and accountability, and provides them with the option of selecting the best transitional justice mechanism to address their specific needs,” said Dr. Mohammed.
The objective of the report is to allow Darfuri civil society to engage in vital conversations about transitional justice so they are equipped to lead once a peace agreement is reached.
Since 2003, the people of Sudan’s western region of Darfur have been in armed conflict with government authorities, demanding an end to decades of marginalization and neglect. The hostilities have led to hundreds of thousands of deaths, mass displacements and other human rights violations, such as torture, sexual violence, and rape. Women and girls in Sudan’s war torn Darfur region continually face rape and sexual assault, despite increased international awareness in the five years since the start of the conflict. Many have since called on the Sudanese government to end sexual violence in Darfur, however neither the Sudanese security forces, nor international peacekeepers, have done enough to protect women and girls from attack.
Therefore this report is much welcomed as it explores approaches to holding accountable those responsible for these these crimes and concludes that a combination of prosecutions, at various levels, as well as truth-seeking mechanisms, is important for any transitional society. It stresses that local political will and engagement with the international community have historically been crucial for the success of any post-conflict plan. Most important, the report emphasizes how critical it is for the people of Darfur to lead the way toward justice for past wrongs and a future free from violence.
However while this report will clearly have an impact, efforts to bring a full-scale peace are sadly not striking deep enough, as the continuous suffering and killing in Darfur rages on. As an international community we have, and are, continuing to fail the people of Darfur, as only a handful of activists and international aid actors have stood untied against the genocide and continuing sexual violence. As the people countless, mostly women, children and elderly remain displaced and under threat of food shortage, disease and violence true peace lies deep in the shadows. However the forward and extensive thinking to address the long-term impacts of the future will make great strides in easing the peoples burden as well as to prevent future atrocities.
Click here to download a copy of the report and see video and photos from the launch event.
Please also see my previous articles on Dr. Mohammed The People of Darfur’s Doctor and RFK Human Rights Award Given to Sudanese Doctor
