حركة العدل و المساواة السودانية
Justice & Equality Movement Sudan (JEM)
26 April 2018
Mr. António Guterres
Secretary-General
United Nations
RE: Concerns over the 2018 Report of the Secretary-General on Conflict-Related Sexual Violence
On behalf of the Justice and Equality Movement Sudan (JEM), I write to express my shock and great concern regarding the inclusion of JEM as a “party credibly suspected of committing or being responsible for patterns of rape or other forms of sexual violence in situations of armed conflict” in the Annex to the 2018 Report of the Secretary-General on Conflict-Based Sexual Violence (“2018 Report”). JEM has always staunchly opposed any form of sexual violence and has undertaken every reasonable effort to prevent and combat sexual violence, not only among its own members but also with its allies in the Sudan Revolutionary Front and Sudan Call.
Since 2012, JEM has issued and renewed express Command Orders providing for, among other things, the prohibition of sexual violence. In fact, JEM most recently issued a Renewed Command Order prohibiting sexual violence in January 2018 as part of a Command Order regarding the protection of children. These Command Orders build upon and reinforce the JEM Penal Code and the JEM Forces Organization Law, which provide for the prohibition of and punishment for the commitment of crimes of sexual violence by JEM members.
Moreover, in accordance with its established Operational Mechanisms and Action Plans, JEM has maintained committees to oversee and monitor adherence to its moral and international legal obligations, and JEM has no record of a single incidence of sexual violence crimes having been committed by one of its members (armed or non-armed).
The Leadership of JEM has always maintained a firm commitment to the protection of women and the prohibition of sexual violence. JEM has thus never wavered from its obligation to uphold international norms and standards governing conflict-related sexual violence, and JEM has adhered to all relevant Security Council resolutions.
It is thus quite concerning that the 2018 Report has identified JEM as being credibly suspected as a perpetrator of such egregious crimes in Sudan and South Sudan, despite JEM having no recorded instances of conflict-related sexual violence committed by its members and the lack of any explicit evidence or explanation to that effect in the 2018 Report.
The news about JEM being accused of sexual violence in the 2018 Report has already been spread across the Sudanese and international media, with the Government of Sudan-backed news outlets using these claims as part of a broader campaign to defame JEM and tarnish its image in the midst of the ongoing Darfur peace process.
We, therefore, earnestly request that the 2018 Report be amended so that it no longer identifies JEM as a party suspected of committing sexual violence in situations of armed conflict.
Thank you sincerely for your attention to this serious matter and your commitment to ensuring that the 2018 Report is based on substantiated evidence so that the correct actors are held accountable.
Sincerely
Gibril Ibrahim
Chairperson
Justice and Equality Movement Sudan
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