The African Women’s Solidarity Conference with Sudan kicked off on Wednesday in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, to highlight the violence, violations, and crimes committed during the conflict between the army and the Rapid Support Forces.
According to a statement by the African Horn Women’s Network “Siha,” the conference aims to foster broader African women’s solidarity with Sudan under the slogan “All with Sudan.”
It will focus on the violence and atrocities committed in Khartoum and other parts of the country, seeking to strengthen and expand solidarity and support for citizens, while also exposing the current war’s impact on women and their communities.
The statement further explained that the conference would discuss the importance of women’s participation in decision-making and provide a platform for discussing the situations and policies that led to the war.
The conflict in Sudan, linked to power struggles and clinging to authority, has been marked by violations, sexual violence, and a culture of impunity, rewarding perpetrators and war criminals.
The statement added that successive regimes in Sudan have used violence and violations against women and civilians.
The Bashir regime established the Janjaweed militias, which later became the Rapid Support Forces, to control Darfur and terrorize civilians in the region.
The statement considered the mass demonstrations led by women and youth starting in December 2018 as a reaction to the direct targeting of women and their presence in public spaces.
It reported that women’s bodies in Sudan have become a tool and strategy of war by the Rapid Support Forces, which raped hundreds of women and girls in Khartoum, Darfur, and parts of Kordofan since the outbreak of the war.
Millions of civilians were forced to leave their homes due to fears of sexual violence, murder, and looting. The Sudanese capital, in less than hours, transformed from a city housing nearly 8 million people to a battlefield.
