Sudan military role during mass rape investigation raises doubts
(Reuters) The heavy presence of Sudan’s military during an investigation by international peacekeepers of an alleged mass rape incident in Sudan’s western Darfur region has raised serious concerns at the Security Council, Australia’s U.N. envoy said on Monday. Those concerns were reinforced by remarks from a U.N. official, who described the menacing atmosphere the alleged rape victims were subjected to due to the presence of Sudanese troops while they were interviewed about possible acts of sexual violence. Last week the United Nations said Sudanese troops had denied U.N. and African Union peacekeepers access to a town in Darfur called Tabit where they wanted to investigate reports of an alleged mass rape of some 200 women and girls. The joint U.N.-AU force in Darfur, known as UNAMID, issued a statement on Monday saying a verification team it sent to Tabit had been granted access to the village after a delay of nearly one week. UNAMID said none of those interviewed confirmed they had been raped and the investigation team found no evidence to support the allegations. One alleged rape victim told members of the team that Sudanese military officials ordered them not to speak to the UNAMID team, saying that a committee headed by an army commander would talk to UNAMID on their behalf. The U.N. official added that some of the Sudanese soldiers were drunk, which only heightened the menacing atmosphere for the alleged rape victims. The official also noted that some of the soldiers were in uniform and others in civilian clothes.
Read More: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/11/10/uk-sudan-darfur-rape-un-idUKKCN0IU2B920141110
Denial of Darfur rape case by Unamid shocks Tabit victims
(Radio Dabanga) The villagers of Tabit are shocked after Unamid concluded that it had not found “any evidence or information” about the reported mass rape on Monday. The UN-AU peacekeeping mission visited the village, accompanied by government officials, six days after a verification patrol was denied access to investigate the mass rape of many women and girls in Tabit. A delegation of five members of the Coordination Committee of Refugees and Displaced Persons in Darfur also visited the village: “We just returned from Tabit on Friday with a delegation, after two days of investigation. There we met 60 women and girls, we looked into their eyes while they told us they were raped by soldiers from 8 pm [on Friday 31 October, ed.] until 5 am. Despite the mounting evidence that the mass rape took place, Unamid published a statement on Monday 10 November that it “neither found any evidence, nor received any information regarding the allegations in the media during the period in question”. It did not mention that its verification team was accompanied by the government’s security officials. Radio Dabanga last week recorded testimonies of several victims and two local leaders. They confirmed that government forces raped around 200 women and girls on Friday 31 October, when the soldiers were looking for a comrade who had gone missing in the area. They suspected the local population for being responsible for his disappearance.
Read More: https://www.radiodabanga.org/node/83429
SPLM-N, NUP condemn alleged mass rape in Darfur, call for swift international action
(Sudan Tribune) The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement North (SPLM-N) and the National Umma Party (NUP) condemned the alleged mass rape in North Darfur and called for a swift investigation on the accusations of sexual abuse. Displaced women discussing sexual violence around Garsila camp in West Darfur. (File photo UNHCR) The allegations of mass rape in Tabit last week triggered waves of rejection among the Sudanese political forces and sparked debates and discussions among Sudanese intellectuals inside and outside the country. The charges of mass rape are a “violation of every national heritage and common conscience of the Sudanese people,” said Yasir Arman; SPLM-N secretary general and Sudanese Revolutionary Front (SRF) secretary for external relations. Arman further questioned the position of the regional organisations and the international community over the alleged sexual crime saying the mass rape in Tabit revealed the double standards of the African Union, the Arab League and the Security Council when it comes to deal with such allegations. The international community failed to protect civilians in Sudan, and this is its role in accordance with the international humanitarian laws, the rebel leader further said.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article53002
Security Council doubts Unamid report on mass rape
(Radio Dabanga) The heavy presence of Sudan’s military during an investigation by international peacekeepers of an alleged mass rape incident on Sunday in North Darfur, has raised serious concerns at the Security Council, Australia’s UN envoy said on Monday. Those concerns were reinforced by remarks by a UN official, who described the menacing atmosphere the alleged rape victims were subjected to due to the presence of Sudanese troops while they were interviewed about possible acts of sexual violence. Last week the UN said Sudanese troops had denied Unamid peacekeepers access to Tabit on Tuesday where they wanted to investigate reports about the mass rape of some 200 women and girls. Unamid issued a statement on Monday saying a verification team it sent to Tabit had been granted access to the village after a delay of nearly one week. Unamid said none of those interviewed confirmed they had been raped and the investigation team found no evidence to support the allegations. The issue was discussed by the Security Council. Australia Ambassador Gary Quinlan said the UN special envoy on sexual violence in armed conflict, Zainab Hawa Bangura, and a number of council members voiced concern about the Sudanese military being present when alleged rape victims were interviewed. A UN official familiar with Unamid, who is not authorised to speak to the media, said in an interview the situation during Sunday’s investigation was not conducive to a proper examination of allegations of mass rape.
Read More: https://www.radiodabanga.org/node/83435
‘Darfur mass rape impossible, UN may enter area’: Sudan army
(Radio Dabanga) The Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) dismissed reports about a mass rape in North Darfur on Sunday, and said that the UN-AU peacekeeping mission has now been authorised to investigate the allegations in Tabit village near El Fasher city. Sudanese opposition parties have condemned the rape, stressing that “it fosters ethnic segregation”. The military spokesman Col. El Sawarmi Khaled Saad stressed that Tabit village is enjoying security and tranquillity, during a press conference on Sunday. He dismissed the reports about an alleged mass rape by Sudanese soldiers on 31 October. Khaled Saad wondered how around 200 women could have been violated, while Tabit is a small village, and the number of troops at the military post does not exceed on hundred soldiers, according to him. “Therefore, this accusation is illogical and does not resemble to the moral values of Sudanese, whether they are military or not,” the spokesman told reporters, adding: “This is impossible.” He disclosed that Unamid has been authorised to probe the sexual assault charges. The spokesman said that a verification patrol was denied access last Tuesday because it had not obtained permission from the authorities. “They are now heading to Tabit,” he told reporters in Khartoum at about 3 pm on Sunday. The Sudanese National Umma Party (NUP) and the Popular Congress Party (PCP) have condemned the “ugly” mass rape of residents in El Fasher “that demands accountability” in press statements. The opposition parties called upon all factions and organisations in Sudan to condemn this incident. Speaking to Radio Dabanga, Kamal Omar Abdelsalam, the PCP political secretary, said that if the crime was proved to be sponsored by the government forces, “all Sudanese forces, militias, politicians, and activists should condemn the incident”.
Read More: https://www.radiodabanga.org/node/83408
First aid convoy from Khartoum reaches S. Sudan: UN
(Sudan Tribune) The United Nations announced on Sunday that its first aid convoy from Sudan into South Sudanese territory reached with adequate supplies for 45,000 people for a month. Both countries, in collaboration with the UN, agreed in July to send food aid to the world’s youngest nation that has faced violent conflict since December last year. Ali Zaatari, the UN resident and humanitarian coordinator in Sudan said the first 18 trucks “carrying some 700 metric tons of food for 45,000 people for one month”, entered South Sudan on Saturday The delivered food will “contribute to ongoing efforts to alleviate the suffering of the conflict-affected populations in South Sudan”. At least 1.8 million people have been forced out of their homes as a result of violence which flared in the coutnry in mid-December 2013. Thousands of people have been forced into neighbouring nations.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article53000
South Darfur state fails to pay employees monthly salaries
(Sudan Tribune) The government of South Darfur state has failed to pay the monthly salaries of its employees for October due to budget deficit. The state governor, Adam Jar al-Nabi, said his government continues to fail to make available the first chapter of the budget which amounts to 5 million Sudanese pounds (SDG), which always leads to delay the payment of salaries of government employees in ten localities. Several government employees complained about the situation, holding the government responsible for the frequent delay of salary pay. South Darfur state, which includes 21 locality and employs 28.000 employees, lost most of its revenues due to the volatile security situation. During their presence in Nyala, the European Union (EU) ambassador to Sudan, Thomas Ulicny announced that the EU donated 11 million Euro to support development projects and humanitarian assistance in South Darfur state.
Read More: http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article53006