Un Expert Warns Of Rape And Other Human Rights Abuses İn Darfur

The United Nations (UN) Independent Expert on human rights in the Sudan, Aristide Nononsi, has called on the government to protect the rights of civilians in Darfur.

Nononsi spoke after a 12-day tour of the Darfur region, in which he interviewed community members to get a true bearing on circumstances in the region, which has been caught up in civil conflict since 2003 that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and left many living in camps.

Nononsi called on the government to enhance the "protection of civilians by the authorities as well as basic services, including access to water, education and health care", while pointing to continued attacks by bandits, armed robbery, assault, killing, rape and the abduction of locals.

He called for the release of civil society activists put under arbitrary arrest without charge or trial. Sexual and gender-based violence was also a serious concern, Nononsi noted, saying that women fell victim to attacks by armed men both inside and outside of the camps. He said the absence of law enforcement within the camps made the situation worse. - Town