Raped women have to live with the threat of HIV/AIDS, with access to only minimal medical care in Darfur and in refugee camps in neighbouring Chad.

A colleague of mine brought this article to my attention. It’s in the latest issue of Forced Migration Review(May 2006), dealing with people trafficking. This is the in-house journal for the Refugee Studies Centre in Oxford. The whole issue can be downloaded as a PDF. If you get a chance, check out Abortion Care Needs in Darfur and Chad by Tamara Fetters.  She is a researcher for Ipas, a non-governmental organization working to increase women’s ability to exercise their sexual and reproductive rights.

The writer examines why there is a lack of reproductive health services and treatment of complications that result from unsafe abortions or miscarriages in health facilities for refugees and those internally displaced.

The article states that violence against women in Darfur and in refugee camps in Chad are well-documented. These occur while women are foraging for water, fuel or animal fodder, or during imprisonment. There have also been cases of women being forced to submit to sex in exchange for ‘protection’ by police officers and male residents in the refugee camps.

In addition, Amnesty International reported that in armed conflicts that it investigated in 1999 and 2000, the torture of women was reported, most often in the form of sexual violence. Women and girls make up more than half of refugees in the world.  These women are more vulnerable to rape and sexual violence. In addition, unaccompanied women and girls are often regarded as common sexual property in camps and may face forced prostitution as well as coercion into sex in exchange for food, documents or refugee status.

Rape is not an accident of war, or an incidental adjunct to armed conflict. Its widespread use in times of conflict reflects the unique terror it holds for women, the unique power it gives the rapist over his victim, and the unique contempt is displays for its victims. The use of rape in conflict reflects the inequalities women face in their everyday lives in peace time. Until governments take responsibility for their obligations to ensure equality, and end discrimination against women, rape will continue to be a favored weapon of the aggressor. – Amnesty International

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