<<previous  |  index  |  next>>

International Response to Sexual Violence

African Union Mission in Sudan

During its lifespan from 2004 through 2007, the African Union’s peacekeeping mission experienced a variety of obstacles to deploying and exercising its mandate.⁹³ Nevertheless, the mission did make some efforts to prevent the occurrence of sexual violence around IDP camps. In 2005, AMIS started “firewood patrols” to accompany IDP women and girls when they leave their camp or settlement to collect grass and firewood. These patrols did sometimes help reduce the risk of violence.⁹⁴ However, NGOs on the ground were concerned that all too often commanders refused to conduct the patrols, planners did not choose routes well and failed to engage IDP communities or humanitarian organizations in the planning, and patrols were often ineffective in reducing violence against women and girls.⁹⁵

The mandate of AMIS Civilian Police (CivPol) was initially to build public confidence, maintain contacts with government police and community members, and monitor the “service delivery” of government police.⁹⁶ The terms of the Darfur Peace Agreement expanded the list of mandated tasks, calling for more proactive monitoring and establishment of special units staffed by women to handle cases of crimes against women.⁹⁷  In late 2006 AMIS CivPol created “Women’s Desks.”⁹⁸ Like many CivPol staff, the police women often lacked the appropriate background in policing standards and protocols for handling cases of sexual violence. On a number of occasions, AMIS staff reported the details of the cases—including the names of victims of sexual violence—in public meetings.⁹⁹One of their biggest challenges was the lack of female language assistants.

In 2007, the mission still lacked the resources it needed to carry out its mandate and it had lost a great deal of credibility, particularly among IDPs who opposed the DPA. The mission came increasingly under attack, most dramatically in October 2007 when 10 peacekeepers were killed in a raid by rebel forces on an AMIS camp near Haskanita.¹⁰⁰  To mitigate risks, AMIS adopted stricter security guidelines; civilian police could no longer conduct their confidence-building activities without heavily armed protection forces accompanying them, compromising their interactions with civilians in camps and villages. AMIS also reduced all its activities.¹⁰¹ By late 2007, most AMIS staff were confined to their bases and often expressed frustration about their predicament. 

United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur

Noting “with strong concern of on-going attacks on the civilian population and humanitarian workers and continued and widespread sexual violence,” the UN Security Council in July 2007 authorized UNAMID to take “necessary action” to protect civilians, albeit “without prejudice to the Government of Sudan.”¹⁰² The 26,000 personnel will include military observers, infantry, civilian police, Formed Police Units,¹⁰³ and civilian staff. In addition, UNAMID has absorbed the so-called “substantive”, functions of the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS), such as the Human Rights Unit, Civil Affairs, and Gender Affairs.

The mandate prioritizes protection of civilians “under imminent threat of physical violence,” qualified by “within its capability and the areas of deployment, without prejudice to the responsibility of the Government of the Sudan.”¹⁰⁴ Its rules of engagement authorize use of lethal force in certain circumstances, but the extent to which UNAMID will exercise its powers depends largely on its resources and leadership.

So far, the Sudanese government’s obstructive tactics and failure of member states to provide necessary military equipment, such as attack helicopters, has significantly delayed deployment of the peacekeepers,¹⁰⁵ contributing to the perception that UNAMID is merely a “re-hatting” exercise. Despite these obstacles, UNAMID has recommenced patrols in IDP camps and started night patrols, inspiring a renewed sense of security among some populations.¹⁰⁶

The police component mandate is similar to that of AMIS following the signing of the DPA. It does not provide powers of arrest and detention and instead focuses on implementing the DPA, policing in IDP camps, and capacity-building for government and “movement” police through monitoring, training, and mentoring. It is still unclear whether UNAMID police will monitor government police more proactively than did AMIS. It plans to maintain the Women’s Desks, or “victim friendly” facilities, staffed by female police officers, inside the major IDP camps. As of February 2008 more than 200 female UNAMID police were deployed to Darfur. The UN Police Commissioner has advocated for more female police to be deployed, but the mission still faces challenges in finding qualified female officers, particularly from higher ranks, from the contributing countries.¹⁰⁷

A continuing concern, voiced by humanitarian actors on the ground, is that in an attempt to fulfill its mandate, UNAMID police officers may too aggressively seek and interview victims of sexual violence. NGOs have complained of unwanted visits by AMIS staff to women’s health clinics in the past. Another concern is that UNAMID Police officers, in their efforts to build the capacity of government police, might take victims of sexual violence to government authorities against their will or share information in breach of confidentiality principles.

These concerns underscore the need for exceptional coordination between UNAMID police and humanitarian actors in cases of sexual violence. UNAMID police, government police, healthcare providers, humanitarian agencies, UN human rights officers, and child protection officers all have mandates to handle individual cases of sexual violence. A working group established to coordinate humanitarian agencies’ responses to sexual violence in each Darfur state has developed a referral pathway to clarify which agencies should be involved at which stages, making clear that at all stages, those who come into contact with the victim must allow her to decide the next steps.  This should be strictly adhered to.