Christian Foundation Lauds Move to Investigate Human Rights Abuses in Sudanese War

Khartoum, 12 October, 2023 / 4:08 PM

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a UK-based human rights group, has welcomed the creation of an international fact-finding mission (FFM) for Sudan, noting that the move will see to it that perpetrators of abuses in the Northeastern African nation’s war are prosecuted.

The United Nations Human Rights Council’s (HRC’s) decided to establish the mission following the adoption of a resolution at its 54th session on Wednesday, 11 October.

The resolution, which was put forward by Germany, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States, passed with 19 votes in favor, 16 votes against, and 12 abstentions.

The resolution establishes an independent international FFM for Sudan, comprising three experts, who will be appointed by the President of the HRC for an initial term of one year.

CSW’s UN Officer, Claire Denman, said that the FFM would allow the international community to hold to account all those responsible for human rights abuses in the conflict that began on April 15, between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

“CSW welcomes the establishment of the FFM, which will greatly increase the international community’s ability to hold Sudan’s warring parties to account for the litany of human rights violations against civilians, and which could also provide a degree of deterrence,” Ms. Denman says in the Thursday, October 12 CSW report.

She adds, “We urge all Member States to ensure that the mandate is well-supported, and that swift measures are taken to bring a decisive end to the current crisis in the country.”

Sudan’s conflict has produced the world’s fastest-growing displacement crisis, according to the UN. Some 1.2 million people have crossed into neighboring countries, and nearly 4.5 million have been uprooted internally.

Amnesty International has further reported that women and girls as young as 12 have been subjected to sexual violence.

According to the CSW report, the FFM is mandated to investigate, collect, consolidate and analyze evidence of violations and abuses, and to systematically record and preserve all information, documentation and evidence for future legal proceedings.

The FFM is also mandated to identify, where possible, individuals and entities responsible for violations or abuses, in order to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable, as well as to make recommendations, in particular on accountability measures, with a view to ending impunity and addressing its root causes and facilitating access to justice for victims.