Flight and violence

Sarah, a human rights activist from Sudan, resisted violent pressure to conform to the restrictions placed on women by the National Islamic Front.

Because of her human rights work Sarah was detained three times and suffered sexual violence, beatings and threats. She continued her activities, but with her life in serious danger, she eventually fled Sudan.

Once in the UK she faced an arduous and lengthy legal process for recognition as a refugee. She has finally been recognized as a refugee. Her struggle for the rights of women in Sudan continues.

Displaced women often find themselves caught in an inescapable cycle of violence. Whether asylum-seekers, refugees or internally displaced, they may flee from one dangerous situation, only to find themselves in an equally hazardous one, vulnerable to violence and exploitation.

Many displaced women are abused during their flight in search of safety. Refugee women and girls experience violence by smugglers or traffickers, border guards, police and other law enforcement officers and sometimes even by other refugees.

The pressures of life in camps for refugees and the internally displaced often lead to an increase in sexual and domestic violence against women. Community and family structures which might otherwise protect women often break down with the pressures of displacement.

Frequently women may be separated from family members during flight, or their family members may have died. Camp settings may further make women targets of violence as they may have to walk miles to collect firewood or water, especially where camps are located close to borders or in bandit zones.

Women and girls are sometimes not even safe from humanitarian aid workers - the very people charged with responsibility for the welfare of refugees and the displaced.

In the face of diminishing rations or cuts in social welfare, women and girls may be forced into prostitution or to pay police officers or other government officials “sexual bribes”.

Paper: Overview of International Standards and Policy on Gender Violence and Refugees June 2006.

Find out more about Refugees and Migrants

Rate the article
Bad	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Very good
Result : 100%							Participated in the vote : 1