Rape and child abuse rampant during South Sudan’s conflict

“Rape cases are at a peak,” concludes a quarterly report released in April by the civil society organisation Community Empowerment for Rehabilitation and Development (CEFoRD).

Given the more than two-year conflict, and the fact that many victims do not come forward to report the crimes, estimates of the numbers of rape victims vary.

A United Nations report on the human rights in South Sudan published in March recorded more than 1,300 cases of rape in five months from April to September last year, in Unity State alone.

Groups allied to the government are being allowed to rape women in lieu of wages but opposition groups and criminal gangs have also been preying on women and girls.

This report came amid South Sudan’s civil war, caused by a power-struggle between President Salva Kiir and now First Vice President Riek Machar in 2013. Tens of thousands of people have since been killed, millions displaced and gender-based attacks are on the rise.

“Credible sources indicate groups allied to the government are being allowed to rape women in lieu of wages but opposition groups and criminal gangs have also been preying on women and girls,” the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) notes, in a report.

Benson Khemis Soro, a human rights activist for CEFoRD, says in Yei they had registered about 50-60 cases between January and March alone.

He says the fact that most rapists go unpunished means that the crime is spreading fast. Soro adds that most inmates spend years in prison without trial. “If people are not tried, perpetrators will continue repeating same crimes,” he says, adding that court cases are also important for victims and their families.

“I have been waiting since February 15, for my child’s case. Now this person has been given 14 years in prison. I am now very happy,” says Bennett, a relative of a girl who was sexually assaulted. Her attacker also has to pay a fine of SSP 10,000.

Gore Wurjo Kenyi, Director of Prisons in Yei, defends the system, saying that criminals are given justice. He denies that attackers are released from prison before their case has been seen.

“In our prison law, if a person is brought in, the period for that inmate is clearly stipulated. If the time expires, the paper is taken back to the police for renewal. Some cases take long time because a lot of procedures need to be followed,” he says.

Meanwhile, Colonel David Lokonga Moses, Governor of Yei State told a rally in Yei, that he would take a tough line on offenders. “Anybody found violating the rights of children will go into prison according to the law,” he warned.

Rape is becoming so rampant. You know it is painful and me as a woman, it really hearts a lot.

But social factors also play a role in the lack of justice, according to Gale Ezibon, Executive Officer in Yei. Some communities seem reluctant to seek justice regarding children or women’s rights, as some legal processes take too long.

Meanwhile, some parents are complicit in child abuses as they allow their daughters to marry underage, he says.

Nadia Rosaline, Chairperson of Yei River County Women Association, outlined further social triggers. She says rape cases had climbed due to drug abuse such as chewing marungi, smoking opium and overdose alcohol drinking, and called for urgent action: “If a person is planning to rape, he should face life imprisonment. Other people, should be castrated so that they don’t think of a woman,” she says. “Rape is becoming so rampant. You know it is painful and me as a woman, it really hearts a lot.”

According to some people, women’s clothing is also to blame for the rise in rape. Gale, who also formerly worked as local government inspector in Yei, argues that “decent dressing”, a term which he does not describe further, should be made the focus of local policies.

But Esther Amona, a citizen, says the culture of criticising women should change: “Some of the elders have been cursing people […]. They will tell you that you continue with that behaviours of yours - meaning that you are already cursed,” says Esther.

She adds mental issues, cultural influences and conflict also trigger the sharp rise in rape cases, but she rules out any impact of how women dress.

Voice for Change Research Coordinator, Clement Yope says the organisation has community discussions to sensitise citizens on the need to abandon negative cultural and social norms including sexual violence, early and forced marriages and women and children’s rights.

Community advocators hold discussion meetings in the community bringing together local residents, chiefs and actors. “There are some social norms that are negative, so we need them to be put aside so that in future, in some three, four years to come, then we will be able to see that Yei is peaceful, women and girls live free from gender sexual violence,” he says.

With support from Voice for Change, a civil society organisation, health experts from clinics and hospitals in Yei gathered for a five-day training, aimed at providing free care and advice to the survivors of sexual attacks.

The programme is now underway, but Otim Thomas Ali, from the Advocacy and Rehabilitation Centre for Sexual Assault Survivors, says many rape cases are not reported, because of social stigma, or a lack of awareness of the free health care services or the relevant authorities for such cases.

The main problem is, these cases of child abuse are increasing.

He urges communities in South Sudan to stop blaming those who fall victims of sexual assaults. “The number of patients we are receiving is too small compared to the incidence of attacks in the community,” he says. “Let us not fear that when we report cases of sexual assaults - we are not making a mistake. We are saving the lives of our children.”

Yei River County Assistant Commissioner for Gender, Child and Social Welfare, Victoria Nasera Augustine says that in the region 15 cases of child rights abuses have been registered since the start of this year, including 13 rape cases.

Nasera says other cases of child abuse include early and forced marriage and early pregnancy, adding “the main problem is, these cases of child abuse are increasing”.