Author: DWAG Communication

Dear Supporters,

Ten years ago today, on March 4^th the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued the first arrest warrant for President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan. The initial charges were for war crimes and crimes against humanity. However, on July 12, 2010, the ICC issued a second warrant this time inducing the added charge of genocide. The ICC cited Sudan’s genocidal campaign in Darfur, which has been ongoing for more than 15 years and continues unabated to this day.

 

For more than 15 years, the Sudanese Government’s military forces and their allied militia (the Janjaweed) have carried out systematic attacks against the Darfuri people based on their ethnicity. They have bombed villages, abducted civilians, looted private property, and used rape as a weapon of war against women and girls. As a result, over 4 million Darfuris have been affected, and over 3 million have been forced to leave their villages and continued to live in makeshift camps within Sudan and Chad. To date, over 3 million people remain in these camps with limited access to humanitarian assistance, education, health care, and food.

 

The impunity must end! President al-Bashir’s continued freedom from liability for such heinous crimes serves as an affront to our international human rights, humanitarians’ laws, and the genocide convention that our world leaders repeatedly vowed to uphold.

 

We must speak up, continue to expose al-Bashir’s crimes, and hold our leaders accountable for ignoring them. We urge the United States government not to normalize relations with Sudan as normalizing with Genocidaires is equal to normalizing genocide.

 

In the coming days, we will be sharing information about the situation and will give you the opportunity to take action.

 

We urge you to join us on social media to denounce this criminal and urge our leaders not to let Bashir get away with murder.

 

With Gratitude,

Niemat Ahmadi, President

Darfur Women Action Group’s team

 

Photo Credit: Sudan Tribune

 

According to the Sudan Tribune, the Special Assistant of the U.S. President and Senior Director for African Affairs of the National Security Council, Cyril Sartor, met on Monday with Sudanese Assistant President Faisal Hassan Ibrahim Ali, at the presidential palace in Khartoum to discuss U.S.- Sudanese Relations.

Despite the fact that Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has conducted a decade-long genocide, and that peaceful, nationwide protests calling for al-Bashir to step down have erupted, this meeting reaffirmed America’s desire to normalize relations with the oppressive Sudanese regime even if it costs human lives. This, of course, is of little surprise considering the Trump Administration’s friendly foreign policy towards dictators of all sorts.

But the way Mr. Sartor described the situation not only hearkened back to President Trump’s regrettable “both sides” comments following the violence, including a murder, by white supremacists in Charlottesville but demonstrated just how comfortable the U.S. administration is with using and supporting banana republic tactics.

After saying that “no external solutions will be imposed on Sudan,” Mr. Sartor stressed the importance of “the Sudanese government’s respect of the citizens’ right to peaceful expression, while demanding at the same time the other side to abide by the same peaceful commitment.”

Mr. Sartor’s comment came as a shock to the Sudanese people and those of us working on human rights in Sudan.

The violence by the al-Bashir regime against this peaceful protest is well documented.  More than 50 protesters have been killed, well over a thousand jailed, and reports of torture are common.  27 doctors have been jailed, six hospitals have been attacked, tear gas has been used in extreme fashion—even leading to death, the free media has been silenced, and journalists have been jailed.  But Mr. Sartor and the Trump Administration want to make sure that “both sides” act peacefully.  In his 30 years of ruling, al-Bashir has never acted peacefully.  This is a man with one of the poorest human rights records in history.

Of course, this sort of rhetoric is like gold to al-Bashir who uses it to back his false claims of violence against his government.  Experience shows that the more legitimacy he gets from the U.S., the more violent his regime becomes. This includes the free pass that President Bashir received from the previous administration that is now directly impacting peaceful people who have grasped an opportunity to take control of their lives.  The U.S. policy towards Sudan has been a mess for years, and has only emboldened al-Bashir to kill his own citizens. This policy needs immediate attention and redirection, and it needs the truth on its side to be successful.

As peaceful protesters call upon Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to step down from office, this is his reaction:

 

1. Dozens of innocent Sudanese protesters have been killed in the last month by the Sudanese government.

Instead of peacefully walking away from office, President al-Bashir is brutalizing

his people into submission, but his plan is not working so far. Sudanese citizens, especially millennials, are taking to the streets of Khartoum to rally for his exit.

 

2. Sudanese police are attacking their own people.

They are throwing tear-gas at protestors in response, particularly at the University students and in a hospital.

 

3. A doctor was killed in cold-blood for attempting medical treatment of wounded.

Witnesses report that the doctor was trapped inside a house with protestors providing them with medical help when police forces began using tear gas to force them out of the house. The doctor decided to go outside with his hands raised, signaling that he was approaching peacefully. He asked if he was able to talk with the soldiers and they agreed, telling him to continue to walk towards them when they fired.

 

4. The Sudanese government is trying to manipulate the news cycle to leave the outside world in the dark about daily violent attacks.

Sudanese government revoked journalists accreditation and arrested 38 of them for ‘fake news.’ Twitter, Facebook, and WhatsApp are blocked by Sudanese government too, however tech-savvy millennials are circumventing the government’s VPN system to continue posting scenes of the protests for the world’s viewing.

 

5. The Sudanese government is taking away citizens’ human right to education.

Universities and schools closed by Sudanese government for a ‘state of emergency.’

University professors from Khartoum University have been arrested for attempting to participate in the protests, the rest of them had been blocked from joining and were trapped in university buildings surrounded by security forces for three hours.

 

From Mid October 2018 through early December 2018, there have been over 40 violent incidents against the Darfuri people in Sudan. 40 people have been killed while 91 have been injured or made into victims of rape, robbery, or property destruction. Government backed militias and the government forces were the main perpetrators of violence against Darfuris. The overwhelming majority of the victims are women and children.

 

On the week of November 10, sixteen villages in Jabe Marra have been completely destroyed and burn to the ground,  leaving over 50,000 people without homes or any survival means

 

The Sudanese military forces have used excessive violence against Darfuris. On November 15, two children were killed in a shelling by the Sudanese Armed Forces near East Jeble Marra, South Darfur. In another separate incident, the Sudanese Air Force killed a displaced woman as they bombed her village located in Central Darfur

 

In most instances, there are multiple attacks in one day. In one incident, on October 4, four armed herdsmen trespassed with their cattle on a farm being attended by two women. The women went out to drive the cattle off their property, however the herders confronted them and shot them. The two women were seriously injured and taken to receive medical treatment. The very same day, another report came in of a man who was gunned down by armed herdsmen. The herdsmen killed Salim Ahmed in cold blood before stealing his camel. They then fled the scene with Ahmed’s property, leaving Ahmed dead.

 

These acts of violence are not random or isolated incidents. These are a part of the well-orchestrated and systematic genocidal attacks by regime in Khartoum against the people of Darfur that has been going on for more than fifteen years. The victims are consistently unarmed civilians who are farmers, merchants, students or professionals merely trying to earn their daily living. Its president al-Bashir policy of indifference and aggression intended to exterminate the people of Darfur and to take over their lands. Prior to this DWAG have documented over 200 violent attacks during the first half of 2018 with similar trends.

 

While the government of Sudan perpetrates these heinous crimes, the international community’s response is deafening silence. For this reason, President al-Bashir has been emboldened and continues to perpetrate these horrific crimes with impunity.

 

Today there are over 4 million genocide victims who have been driven out of their homes and have yet to return home for fear that their lands have been confiscated. Over half a million people have been killed and justice has yet to be achieved for them. Countless women and girls have been raped and are still struggling without any trauma counseling or psycho-social support.

 

President al-Bashir is the only sitting head of state wanted for the some of the world’s most serious crimes, but he is yet to be held accountable. Therefore, we at DWAG refused to be silent or let al-Bashir get away with murder. We must continue to speak, expose the crimes and demand our leaders and our international institution fulfil their responsibilities and make it clear to President al-Bashif that impunity for genocide is not an option. Without proper justice, accountability and genuine peace, the crimes in Darfur and Sudan will not be resolved sustainably.

 

We call on the US government to demand that al-Bashir must cease attacks on civilians, and all violation of rights in Darfur and across the Sudan. We call on the US to impose targeted sanctions, assets freezing, and travel ban on Sudanese officials responsible of committing crimes in Darfur and across Sudan. The United nations Security Council members, like the United States, have an obligation to protect civilians and pursue justice for the victims in Sudan. Without proper justice and accountability, the crisis in Darfur and Sudan will not be resolved and a sustainable peace will not be attained.

On Friday, December 14, Darfur Women Action Group (DWAG) members traveled to New York City to attend an International Criminal Court (ICC) briefing to the United Nations Security Council. The briefing, delivered by ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatu Bensouda, was on the 28th report on the situation in Darfur. DWAG members also had the opportunity to meet privately with Chief Prosecutor following the briefing.

 

The report began with Prosecutor Bensouda reminding the member states that Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir and other Sudanese government officials have multiple arrest warrants against them, comprising over 60 counts of war crimes and over 50 counts of crimes against humanity. Furthermore, Prosecutor Bensouda emphasized that there is growing evidence showing al-Bashir is responsible for the crimes that were committed in the past two decades as well as the ones that are still occurring. The report also highlighted the recent escalation of attacks and increased civilian casualties in the Jabel Mara region, an area in which atrocities are regularly being committed against the people of Darfur.

 

“I continue to be concerned about sexual and gender crimes in the Jebel Marra area,” said Prosecutor Bensouda. “The government (of Sudan) continues a policy of aggression and antagonism.”

 

Prosecutor Bensouda then voiced the ICC’s dissatisfaction with member states’ failure to enforce the Rome Statute. She pointed out that some member states had failed to arrest al-Bashir and bring him to justice while he was visiting certain countries. She then demanded that the UNSC must request an explanation from ICC member states who fail to uphold their legal obligation to the ICC.

 

Prosecutor Bensouda urged the need for UNSC members to support the ICC and stressed that the people of Darfur must not wait any longer to receive justice. She concluded her address with a call for the UNSC to take concrete action that will hold criminals accountable and bring justice to the victims. “Justice delayed is justice denied,” said the Chief Prosecutor in her final statement.

Attending member states had the opportunity to state their positions in response to the ICC Chief Prosecutor’s report. The overwhelming majority of the Security Council members expressed support of the Chief Prosecutor’s report, raised concerns about the future of the internally displaced people (IDPs) in Darfur and expressed their country’s dedication to the ICC’s work in Darfur. Nations, such as the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, Bolivia, Côte d’Ivoire and the Netherlands, reiterated their government’s commitment to the ICC, to the rights of the people of Darfur, to justice, and have echoed the Chief Prosecutor’s call for the need to bring indicted parties to face justice at the ICC.

 

There were a few state representatives who offered contradictory remarks, such as Ethiopia, Russia, China, Kuwait and the United States, most of who are not even party to the ICC. Nonetheless, they have not denied the fact that there are atrocities being committed in Darfur and there is a need for action to resolve the situation.

 

Sudan’s Ambassador to the UN, in an attempt to obfuscate the issue, offered the most controversial, unethical and unprofessional statement in response to the Chief Prosecutor’s report. The Sudanese representative stated that Sudan complies with the Geneva Convention, but failed to offer contradictory evidence against the ICC accusations.Instead, the Sudanese representative used false statements to attack and discredit the ICC as an institution.

 

Following the briefing, one of the Sudanese diaspora members said, “for Sudan to attack the ICC is not a surprising act. We must be reminded of the fact that this is a regime committing genocide against its own people. It’s just one of many tactics Sudan has employed to divert the attention from their own crimes. As was echoed by the office of the prosecutor’s team, “the Court will not be distracted by the baseless attacks being pushed by Sudan”.

 

Both the the prosecutor’s team and the Darfuri diaspora have agreed that their focus should not be on the government of Sudan’s verbal attacks on the ICC but on the crimes Sudan is committing every day as well as the case for accountability, no matter how long it takes.

 

Following the briefing DWAG members met privately with Prosecutor Bensouda. She stressed the fact that victims’ voices must be heard and has assured the members of the affected community that impunity for these serious crimes is not an option. She emphasized that her office will remain committed and will do everything in its capacity to ensure accountability for the perpetrators and justice for the victims in Darfur will be realized. The Sudanese diaspora, justice advocates and the members of the affected community expressed appreciation to the Chief Prosecutor and her team for their tireless effort and reiterated their unwavering commitment to continue to fight for justice. Activists, survivors, and DWAG members alike will continue to voice support for the Chief Prosecutor’s office, regardless of any obstacles Sudan and its allies attempt to present.

 

“No one can commit crimes of this nature and then not face judgement, no matter who you are, or what country you are in,” said Prosecutor Bensouda. “You must face the consequences.”

 

“In the face of genocide, impunity must not be tolerated, and no one should expect the people of Darfur to relinquish their rights to pursue justice for crimes and the suffering they continue to endure, said Niemat Ahmadi, President and Founder of DWAG.

DWAG believe we must stand firm and rally our supporters to fight against impunity.

 

As the situation in Darfur remain dire, attacks on civilians have not been halted and millions remain in camps. The United Nations/African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) has decided to withdraw from the region, adding another load of fear and uncertainty to the plight of Darfuris. On December 19, the Sudanese Parliament urged the international community to support them and stressed the significance of communicating with the United Nations in a spirit of negotiation and agreement to end the mission of the joint peacekeeping forces in Darfur (UNAMID).

The joint meeting of the National Committee to facilitate UNAMID’s exit with UNAMID and the UN country team was held in Khartoum. The meeting discussed government plans and visions to support the alleged stability in Darfur, the transition from humanitarian work to reconstruction and development, background of current phase requirements and arrangements related to the implementation of UNAMID exit strategy.

Further, according to Radio Dabanga, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated the meeting reviewed the roadmap proposed by the UN country team in Sudan and a 5 + 5 committee was agreed to include representatives from the government, the United Nations and UNAMID to follow up the exit process and address any challenges that may arise in implementation.

The decision of the government of Khartoum to end UNAMID mission in the region means not only they disregard its existence, but they also deny the necessity of protecting the vulnerable victims of al-Bashir’s attack in IDPs camps and resolving the conflict between the concerned parties.

If the UN falls for the bait and decide the complete removal of UNAMID forces in the region, Darfuris will be left to face a serious risk in which perpetual violence and killings will continue to impend over the region.

The united nations have already failed the people of Darfur for not holding Sudan accountable or resolving the crises and now with UNAMID’s withdrawal, it will give the government of Sudan a free pass to commit more crimes with impunity and no one to witness.