Political parties demand new inquiry into North Darfur rape

Sudanese committees and opposition parties have demanded the formation of an independent inquiry committee that will investigate the alleged mass rape in Tabit, North Darfur. They criticised Unamid for announcing it did not find any evidence for the allegations. Several parties plan to stage a peaceful protest in Khartoum on Wednesday. The Sudanese Committee of Solidarity with the Victims of the September Demonstrations in Khartoum has described the recent statement by Unamid, that it did not find any evidence for any violations in Tabit, as “non-neutral and completely false”. In its statement on Monday, Unamid said it did not receive “any information regarding the allegations in the media during the period in question”. A team of investigators went to Tabit on Sunday to verify reports about the mass rape of many women and girls by Sudanese soldiers on 31 October. The army prevented investigators from accessing the village five days earlier. Unamid did not mention in the statement that the team was accompanied by the government’s security officials. ‘Unamid report not credible’ Siddig Yousif, the chairman of the solidarity committee, told Radio Dabanga that he regrets the tragedy that happened to the villagers in Tabit. He claimed that they were threatened by the Sudanese army in the area, and that they were unable to tell Unamid what really happened. “Within this atmosphere, we do not expect that any verification reports by Unamid will be credible.” He demanded the formation of a neutral inquiry committee without any army or security elements, consisted of international actors and civil organisations. In a statement released on Tuesday, the council (shura) of Fur tribes in Darfur asked the Darfuri community to file complaints with the authorities on behalf of the villagers in Darfur. “The victims are afraid to report the crime as they are oppressed by the perpetrators,” the deputy of the council’s secretary-general, El Amin Mahmoud, claimed. He announced that the Fur council will conduct an investigation into the mass rape reports. “The number of victims we counted ranges between 47 to 200.” Opposition criticises Unamid The National Consensus Forces (NCF) have announced that a peaceful protest is planned on Wednesday in front of the headquarters of the European Union in Khartoum. The political opposition parties under the NCF, together with the September demonstrations solidarity committee, hold the EU, among others, responsible for what happened in Tabit. “The EU finances the Unamid, who in turn carries the responsibility to protect the civilians in Darfur.” Siril Adim Mohamed Khair of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) commented that the Unamid’s behaviour has become suspicious and doubtful. “It has become more of a spokesman for the Sudanese government: striving to deny accusations and denying the evidence found on the ground.” Sexual violence is ‘a general phenomenon’ Mohamed Dia Eldin of the NCF stressed that the Sudanese people “have lost their trust in the government” and do not recognise the remarks it made about what happened in Tabit. Eldin added that he is not surprised that “the regime commits crimes against human rights in Darfur”. “But what the soldiers did, does not represent the value and customs of the Sudanese.” Mahmoud of the Fur council told Radio Dabanga from Khartoum that the sexual harassment of women in Darfur “has become a general phenomenon”. “The perpetrators will not be held accountable by the Sudanese government… There should be no immunity for anyone in Sudan, including the military personnel. Nobody stands above the law,” Mahmoud said. File photo: A displaced woman in Zamzam camp, located between Tabit village and El Fasher city in North Darfur. Several families from Tabit reported to Radio Dabanga that they have travelled to the camp immediately after the events. Among them are girls and women who were raped by government forces during the night of 31 October, the sources said. (Unamid) Related: Security Council doubts Unamid report on Darfur mass rape (11 November 2014) Denial of Darfur rape case by Unamid shocks Tabit victims (11 November 2014)