Security Council doubts Unamid report on Darfur mass rape

The heavy presence of Sudan’s military during an investigation by international peacekeepers of an alleged mass rape incident on Sunday in North Darfur, has raised serious concerns at the Security Council, Australia’s UN envoy said on Monday.Those concerns were reinforced by remarks by a UN official, who described the menacing atmosphere the alleged rape victims were subjected to due to the presence of Sudanese troops while they were interviewed about possible acts of sexual violence.Last week the UN said Sudanese troops had denied Unamid peacekeepers access to Tabit on Tuesday where they wanted to investigate reports about the mass rape of some 200 women and girls. Unamid issued a statement on Monday saying a verification team it sent to Tabit had been granted access to the village after a delay of nearly one week. Unamid said none of those interviewed confirmed they had been raped and the investigation team found no evidence to support the allegations.UN concerned about military presence The issue was discussed by the Security Council. Australia Ambassador Gary Quinlan said the UN special envoy on sexual violence in armed conflict, Zainab Hawa Bangura, and a number of council members voiced concern about the Sudanese military being present when alleged rape victims were interviewed.”Ms. Bangura added … that there had been a heavy military presence during the team’s visit and she stressed that while the rape allegations remained unverified, in her view it was not possible to conclude that no sexual violence took place,” said Quinlan, president of the 15-nation council this month. “A number of members of the council expressed very strong concern over this,” he said, adding that Bangura was worried about a possible “wall of silence” and that the atmosphere created was one of threats and “fear of reprisal”.’Atmosphere of intimidation’A UN official familiar with Unamid, who is not authorised to speak to the media, said in an interview the situation during Sunday’s investigation was not conducive to a proper examination of allegations of mass rape. “It was an obvious atmosphere of intimidation,” the official said on condition of anonymity, adding that the military were present in every house the Unamid team visited to conduct interviews.One rape victim told members of the team that Sudanese military officials ordered them not to speak to the Unamid team, saying that a committee headed by an army commander would talk to Unamid on their behalf.The UN official added that some of the Sudanese soldiers were drunk, which only heightened the menacing atmosphere for the alleged rape victims. The official also noted that some of the soldiers were in uniform and others in civilian clothes. Sudan’s UN mission did not respond immediately to a request for comment.Last month, an internal UN review found that Unamid had failed to provide UN headquarters in New York with full reports on attacks against civilians and peacekeepers. The review had been ordered in response to media reports alleging that Unamid intentionally covered up details of deadly attacks.(Reuters) File photo: At Tabit in North Darfur, a convoy of World Food Programme passes by (Unamid) Related: Denial of Darfur rape case by Unamid shocks Tabit victims (11 November 2014) Commander admits to mass rape by soldiers in North Darfur (3 November 2014)