Johannesburg — From the Tigray conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia to the ongoing Somalia Al-Shabaab crisis, to civil wars in South Sudan and the military coup in Sudan, one thing is clear - women and girls suffer the most.
And despite the contribution of millions of dollars in aid from the U.S, European Union and international organisations, some of the money often ends up in the wrong hands, funding weapons for militia groups that terrorise women and girls, especially in rural areas. Mass abductions, forced evictions, rapes, displacements, land grabbing, extorting of rural communities with natural resources and wealth, and many other criminal activities are the result.
"The systematic warfare occurring across the Horn of Africa region since the 1980s to date has affected rural women and their communities. Millions of women have become Internally Displaced People (IDPs), they have become refugees and most of the IDPs in the region are living in the peripheries of the urban centers. They are living in slums and areas that are not prepared to accommodate them. Rural places have been destroyed due to war," said Hala Y Alkarib, regional director of the Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA).
Alkarib made these remarks during the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) side event organized by SIHA and partners to discuss the impacts of war, conflict, and militarization on rural women in Susan, South Sudan, and Somalia. Created by women activists from Somaliland, Ethiopia, and Sudan in the mid-1990s, SIHA is an African women's rights network working in various cultural, political, and geographical environments in Uganda, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Eritrea, Somalia, Somaliland, Sudan, and South Sudan.
Women in this region experience poverty, famine, and rights violations, and continuously carry the burden of discriminatory aspects of religion and traditional and customary laws that oppress them, while children living in these countries are unable to complete school. In Sudan, about 7 million girls and boys do not attend school, according to the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). Despite these challenges women continue to push for equality and basic human rights, and for their voices to be heard.
"Women are leading the resistance in Sudan. Sudan hosts Africa's largest refugee population and this is because of the conflicts in neighboring countries like CAR, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Chad, and Somalia. For the past 20 years, violent armed conflict and impunity, and lack of accountability have also displaced millions of Sudanese people. The military government uses tactics to survive and to sustain their power through environmental degradation also caused by militarism, rising global interest in mining with different militia groups collaborating with several foreign companies and countries in informal mining which has triggered further displacement and forced evictions," Alkarib said.
Sudan has been unstable since 2019 when the popular uprising ousted long-time president Omar al-Bashir. The uprising started when Sudanese took to the street to protest against rising food prices and against al-Bashir's three-decade rule. In October 2021 military officials seized power from the transitional government.
Wars within the same regions often extend and reflect on the further militarisation of neighboring countries. "A conflict that happens in South Sudan will not remain in South Sudan, it will cross the borders and influence neighboring countries," the SIHA director said.
Because of conflict, work opportunities are scarce, existing laws are unkind to women, and men in rural areas are also vulnerable to exploitation as they join - sometimes involuntarily - militant groups or the country's army.
Alkarib said rural women and displaced people assume other work to survive, like alcohol brewing which is a crime in Sudan. It then leads to thousands of women being arrested for lengthy periods without access to legal aid. Street vending and alcohol brewing are considered dangerous work for women because of the morality laws and also because it exposes women and put them in direct contact with militarised men who are roaming the streets at the peripheries of the cities and villages and in local markets.
In neighboring Somalia, conflict has been raging since 1991 making women's participation in political, social, and economical areas extremely challenging.
"Women living in the peripheries of Somalia play a crucial role in eradicating rural poverty but also improving the well-being of their families, yet they are constantly being confronted by the risks of being exposed to violence and discrimination. Not excluding gender stereotypes which in turn has denied them equitable access to opportunities, resources assets, and services. Since the collapse of the Somali state in 1991 militia groups have been a distinguishing aspect of the country's conflict landscape. Armed groups have been a main weapon used by Somali power brokers, top federal authorities, the national government, and also foreign interventionists to advance their own interests," said Gender and Advocacy Manager Deeqa Odaway from the Somali Women Development Center (SWDC).
Somalia has more than 60 warring parties, including clan warlord militias and civil militia groups.
"According to feminist scholars, militarism is a product of patriarchy. When militarisation increases so does death, destruction, and other human rights violations. Somali women and girls are exposed to heightened levels of sexual and gender-based violence and forced displacement and loss of family members," said Odaway.
She said many of these internally displaced people were once rural women forced to leave their homes because of armed groups. According to Odaway, the human rights violations coupled with the worst drought that the country is facing, and the lack of sustainable systems in turn create a dire situation for Somalis, and its already vulnerable inhabitants.
"As a result of militarisation, armed groups have exacerbated violence against women and girls, including rape, forced and early marriage, child marriages, denial of resources, and female genital mutilation. Countless girls and women living in those areas are easy exploitation for sexual exportation due to the living conditions but also the lack of awareness on what rights and services they are entitled to have," she said.
Odaway said it is crucial to understand the intersectionality of gender, ethnicity, and class. She said these factors contribute to the unique challenges women face in relation to the high mortality rate, lack of reliable supply of food, increased poverty, an outbreak of diseases due to the living situation, forced and early marriages, and the denial of resources.
"Many girls are either forced by their families to get married as a means of income, (or) there are other young girls who are faced with challenges within their families which often result in them wanting to escape their living situation. Due to the lack of medical care, the lack of knowledge, and health services, the delay in seeking aid is one of the largest and most significant factors contributing to the high number of maternal deaths. People in rural areas often must resort to taking long routes to seek care in Mogadishu and along the way they face challenges and obstacles that can result in death," she said.
Women's voices are often silenced, and they are discredited, Odaway said, laying the blame with men ruling some rural areas. The ones who responsible for decision-making, and discourage women from speaking out about their experiences, which in turn impedes women's equal participation and active participation in public life due to stigmatization, shame, and fear of speaking out.
Odaway applauded women-led organizations including Somali Women Development Centre for providing critical services such as psycho-social support and legal aid livelihood training which enables the women to rebuild their lives and communities around them.
In neighbouring South Sudan, the presence of military forces led to the displacement of rural women, and it also impacts their participation in decision-making. By December 2022, 166 people were killed, 237 injured, 20,000 to 50,000 were internally displaced, and 3,000 refugees fled the States of Upper Nile and Jonglei in South Sudan when fighting between rival militias resumed in August 2022.
The crisis has left many women and girls exposed to abuse and exploitation as they lack basic health services, said Nyachangkuoth Tai, Acting Executive Director for Assistant Mission for Africa, a faith-based feminist organization based in South Sudan.
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"Reports on women affected by conflict in South Sudan by UNFPA found that 65% of South Sudanese women will experience sexual and gender-based violence. Most South Sudanese women who are affected by conflict lack access to services such as health care, education, and economic opportunities. Pregnant women in rural areas often have to cross rivers during floods to have access to health care in order to deliver babies. Due to conflict many women and girls have limited food, water, and sanitation therefore women and girls become victims of sexual exploitation. The conflict has also hindered the progress of women and girls in South Sudan in general," said Tai.
In order to see change, Tai said It is essential that action be taken to protect rural women in general and to ensure that their rights are respected and upheld and that they have better access to basic needs and participate in politics, business, and decision-making processes.
"Women's issues are not secondary; they are essential and primary. Policies to protect women and girls are supposed to be in place without women having to advocate for them. It is wrong to force women to be in a position where they must advocate for their birth rights. It is so wrong to have women having to do double efforts to show that they belong in these spaces whereby birth they were created to belong in those places," she said.
The three speakers agreed that the impact of war, conflict, and militarization on women living in rural areas is significant and far-reaching.
"The distinct experiences of these women must be understood through an intersection feminist lens which recognizes the multiple and intersecting identities of women living in these areas. Not only are they more prone to violence because of their gender but also due to their social and economic background that they have. We must continue to advocate for the rights of these women and work towards creating a more just and equitable society for all. Change is necessary but more importantly, change is possible," said Odaway.
AllAfrica's reporting on peacebuilding is supported by a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York.
