“NO PLACE TO HIDE”: THE CASE OF SEXUAL AND GENDER BASED VIOLENCE IN SOUTH SUDAN M. Mathai (UON) 8 th Annual Pan-African PCAF Psychotrauma Conference Date July Venue: CUEA NAIROBI University of Nairobi ISO 9001: Certified

Objective  The objective of this presentation is to highlight the problem of sexual violence in armed conflicts with a special focus on South Sudan and the cultural background on which it has evolved  We can’t stop talking!  We must not forget! Incomprehension Monstrous Dissociation Silence & Reduced Accountability

 "In all my life and experience of nearly 30 years in public service and in the UN and as a government minister, I have never seen what I have seen today,” 1  Zainab Bangura the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict after visiting a U.N. camp in Bentiu in October 2014

Introduction Zainab Bangura Zainab Bangura has seen her share of conflicts in Africa Sierra Leone, CAR, Liberia, Somalia, DRC ---  In all these civil conflicts atrocities perpetrated against women in South Sudan stand out.  Women attacked by rebel forces, government forces:  South Sudan is turning up to eclipse other conflict countries in terms of brutality and violent acts against women  Like in other parts of Africa- Ethnicity and age old conflicts have been manipulated serve political interests.  Rape,  Penetration with objects- Guns, Bullets etc  Gang-rape  Abduction and sexual slavery  Forced abortion  Mutilation  Murder  Burning

Background: Independence 9 th July 2011

4 th Anniversary of independence Thursday 9 th July  ?10, ,000 killed  1.5 million internally displaced  About 730,000 people have fled to neighboring countries*  - 90% of these are women and children- fleeing the fighting and brutal human rights violations.  120,000 sheltered in UN compounds in land  United Nations estimates that the number of people in need for 2015 will include an anticipated 1.95 million internally displaced persons and a projected 293,000 refugees 2 Daily Nation 10 th July 2015

Mid December 2013  Conflict breaks out between government forces of President Salva Kiir and rebel group(s) led by the sacked Vice President Riek Machar  Conflict soon degenerated into an inter-ethnic armed conflict predominantly between the Dinka and the Nuer but characterized by fluid and dynamic alliances with different armed groups among the nearly 60 different ethnic groups

From political disputes to armed conflict  Heavy fighting with high civilian casualty  brutal violence against civilians and violations of international human rights and humanitarian law from all sides and now a looming famine.

The Massacre of Bentiu "worst massacre"  Attack on the Oil town of Bentiu in April 2014 has been termed the "worst massacre" of the ongoing civil war 3.  Hundreds were massacred and left to lie in the open for days.  Radio to announcements calling out- which ethnic groups should be targeted  Calling out for the rape of women from these groups.  Bentiu like other towns has since changed hands several times and each time with new atrocities against civilians

No place to hide  In Bentiu, People had sought refuge in churches, mosques and hospitals but they were not spared 4.  Even UN camps are not places of safety- April 20 th 58 people were killed when a UN base in Bor was attacked 3.  Protection of civilian populations women and children has been extremely limited

Violence Against Women and children The impact on the women and children has been devastating: “It’s unbelievable. It’s painful... the harassments and sexual violence that take place at checkpoints, and when the women go out to get food and when they go out to get firewood. It’s really extremely distressing,” Bangura said, fighting back tears 1.

UN Mission In Sudan Report  Widespread sexual violation against women and girls (UNMIS 2014).  A hospital in Juba reported that 74% of the survivors treated were below 18years and even as young as 2 years  Violations are ethnically based- Women are raped repeatedly, gang raped as the towns change hands on the basis of ethnicity  Atrocities are being committed by all the parties to the conflict (2015 UNMIS)  New reports (2015) from UNMIS cite the testimony of 115 victims and eyewitnesses from the Unity state counties - SPLA fighters have abducted and sexually abused and even burnt alive women and girls  “The scope and level of cruelty that has characterized the reports suggests a depth of antipathy that exceeds political differences.” 5

No safe havens  Amnesty international in a report called Nowhere Safe: Civilians under Attack in South Sudan 6.  “We found consistently wherever we went – whether it was a conflict area where the government troops were in control or whether it was the armed opposition that were in control – civilians had been specifically targeted. And they had been killed. We found evidence of abductions, evidence of rape, including rape of women, who were pregnant, and young girls, ----"

 --there are no safe havens, Kagari said, even in places typically considered sanctuaries (Michelle Kagari) 7.  Rebels reportedly used a church in the town of Malakal as a "rape camp" for months, despite the presence of UN peacekeepers nearby 8.

No place to run  When the attackers come- Women and children run but the are attacked while fleeing and they are attacked where they hide.  “the ones that were only raped are lucky because they survived. Many were raped and later killed, others were just killed.” 9

Gendered experience in armed conflicts- Conflict Related Sexual Violence (CRSV)  War INJURES AND KILLS  While more men are killed in war, women often experience sexual violence  Sexual Violence against women is characterized by silence and shame, self and social stigma  Under reporting and neglect

CRSV in Sudan: An ongoing problem  Sexual violence and other forms of violence against women are not new to the current conflict in South Sudan- and have been reported in pre- independence conflicts.  The inter-factional fighting which ran parallel to the decades of war with Sudan was characterized by violence against women-  "Sexual violence featured heavily as a weapon of war, and people began to view women as legitimate targets. Women were seen as another battlefield to be conquered.“ 10

Low social status of women and Gender based violence  Women and girls become victims of sexual violence in armed conflicts because even in peace time they have low status, second class member of society with low resources and few rights even over their own bodies.  GBV in conflict does not just happen out of no-where the seeds from which it sprouts are already sown, nurtured and flourishing in the soil.  Sexual violence in conflict is a gross expression of what already exists domestic violence wife batteryabduction of women and children during cattle raidsrape and sexual assaultwife inheritance, forced and child marriages, practice of giving a girl child in compensation for a crime or a wrong committed by her family  "Women have told me that this violence takes many forms and includes domestic violence and wife battery, abduction of women and children during cattle raids, rape and sexual assault, wife inheritance, forced and child marriages, and the practice of giving a girl child in compensation for a crime or a wrong committed by her family," ( Phumzile Mlambo Ngcuka, the executive director of U.N. Women. 2014) 11

‘Spoils of war’  Women are raped as part of destruction of the property of the enemy  Women are raped in order to unravel the fabric of the opponent’s society  Women are raped as punishment for ‘being’  Women are raped as a way to humiliate the men they are related to  Women are raped by the men they are related to regain their feeling of power after defeat/ humiliation  The rape of women is about the exercise of power and control   “Their bodies become a battleground over which opposing forces struggle”

Disempowerment  The context in which SV in conflict occurs is broader than the conflict and precedes conflicts IT IS:  A social environment in which an overall disempowerment and socio-economic and cultural marginalization of women in peace time exists  A Social environment in which all forms of Gender Based violence have been normalized  And normalization reaches far into post conflict period and even to the next generation

Health Impact on Girls and Women  Physical harm and injuries  Infectious disease  Environmental harm  Mental health disorders- depression, Anxiety, PTSD, SUD  Malnutrition  Reproductive health Consequences- STIs, HIV, Risky pregnancy, Unsafe abortions, infertility etc  up to 80 per cent of displaced girls in Liberian conflict estimated to have had an induced abortion by the age of 15

Social Impact  Abandonment and displacement  Bearing children of rape  Stigma  Living in the streets  Increased burden of care

Summary  Disempowered Girls and Women in society who face increased gender based discriminations violence and inequality in peace times are at higher risk of victimization at the beginning of a conflict, during conflict and flight and re-victimization in the post conflict aftermath  “Sexual violence is the biggest fear for women in Central African Republic”. 06 Mar 2014 International Rescue Committee

Conclusion  Sexual violence in conflict situations can be predicted long before the conflict occurs  Measures can be taken to protect the women  But long term prevention involves the dismantling of social economic and cultural structures that reproduces and maintains the gender inequality  In Africa, this includes among others, doing away with some of our traditions- dear to many hearts- that symbolize male ownership of women’s bodies

No rape culture- just a culture that dis-empowers women

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