What is the status of women in South Sudan after Beijing Plus?
By Jane Kani Edward
Twenty years has passed since the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women was held in Beijing, China in 1995. A parallel Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) Forum held in Huairou city near Beijing, under the theme “look at the world through women’s eyes,” attracted thousands of participants. The NGO Forum had two goals: to influence the UN member states’ platform for action; and to hold a substantive and celebratory forum highlighting women’s visions and strategies for the 21st century. A large number of Sudanese women delegates from Egypt, Sudan, Kenya, Canada, and Britain representing various NGOs attended the forum. The main outcome of the Fourth World Conference on women was the adoption of “The Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action,” as an agenda for women’s empowerment and a vital global policy document on gender equality. It outlined strategic objectives and actions for the advancement of women and the achievement of gender equality in twelve critical areas of concern, which include, “women and poverty; education and training of women; women and health; violence against women; women and armed conflict; women and the economy; women in power and decision-making; institutional mechanism for the advancement of women; human rights of women; women and the media; women and the environment; and the girl-child,” (UN Women at: http://www.unwomen.org/en)
To assess progress made in the last twenty years, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) convened its 59th session, from March 9-20, 2015, under the theme “Implementing the Beijing Platform for Action.” The session focused on the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and current challenges that affect its implementation and the achievement of gender equality and empowerment of women. (UN Women, htt://www.unwomen.org/en/csw59-2015).
Sudan was a united country when Sudanese women, from north and south, attended the NGO Forum in 1995. A number of political and economic changes had occurred since then. For instance, the civil war between the north and the south came to an end following the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005, and South Sudan became an autonomous region within a united Sudan. On July 9, 2011 South Sudan became an independent country after its people voted overwhelmingly to separate from the rest of Sudan. On December 15, 2013, barely three years into its independence, the country reverted to violence, triggered by power struggle within the ruling party Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM). The ongoing South-South war led to the death of thousands of people, and to displacement of many thousands. It created unimaginable human suffering, insecurity, fragmentation of the social fabric of society and economic hardships. Sadly, the most affected by the consequences of the war are women and children.
Drawing specifically on some of the twelve vital areas of concern outlined in the Beijing Declaration, I attempt to examine the following questions: what is the status of women in South Sudan today? Or how are women progressing in South Sudan? And what are some of the steps taken by the state since 2005 to address women’s concerns? Following developments in South Sudan since 2005 to the present, one can argue that many changes related to women’s status did occur. Unfortunately, most of the changes worked to the disadvantage of women.
Certainly, women’s political participation is one of the areas that gained momentum in the period leading up to the signing of the CPA and afterwards. For instance, recognizing the contributions of women to the liberation movement, and in an effort to redress historical injustices, the signatories to the CPA allocated a 25% of women representation in all levels of government. In early 2013, the Government of South Sudan further increased the percentage to 35%. These changes led to significant increase in the number of women represented in key government positions. These changes have also brought women and gender issues to the fore front of the national debate. In addition, the affirmative action for women can be viewed as one of the mechanisms used by the state to accelerate the political empowerment of women in South Sudan. These developments indeed represent major breakthroughs for women’s participations in politics and other public affairs. Thus, despite the challenges, women in South Sudan are making strides in political participation.
However, observing other areas of concern to women, such as economic, education, health, violence against women, and human rights, for instance, it is obvious that the situation of majority of South Sudanese women is not improving. Cases of violence against women have been on the rise since 2005. In addition to their prevalence, the character of these violent abuses is also changing. For instance, since the eruption of the current war in late 2013, violence against women has shifted from minor incidents to extreme and systematic forms of abuses such as murder. Of course, South Sudan customs and traditions perpetuate practices such as wife-beating, verbal abuse, and other minor abuses which constitute violations of women’s rights. However, the murder of Ms. Cecilia Oba Tito, the first female mayor of Yei town of Central Equatoria State, in early November 2014, and the brutal killings of countless women and young girls in the ongoing war, represent a turning point in the level of violence against women in the recent history of South Sudan. Gender-based abuses such as rape and murder of women, in my view, are contrary to South Sudanese cultural practices and traditions that recognize, respect, and value ‘motherhood,’ and the role of women as givers of human life.
South Sudan is endowed with natural resources that can be utilized for the development of the country. However, since 2005 the national and state governments have neglected the health and education sectors of the country, leading to depletion of existing infrastructure. In turn, the health sector and learning environment of ordinary citizens have been negatively affected. Poverty and economic hardships, particularly in rural areas are widespread, threatening the livelihoods of many ordinary South Sudanese. The internally displaced peoples are dependent on international relief aid. For the last ten years, rather than investing in health, education, and training to foster economic development, the Government of South Sudan allocated a substantial portion of the national budget to defense and security.
Ironically, twenty years ago at Beijing Conference, South Sudanese women advocated for women’s rights, and a peaceful resolution to the longest civil war in Africa. Today, as the South-South war continues, with no prospect for peace in the near future, and as the economic situation in the country deteriorates, it is clear that South Sudanese women in South Sudan and abroad will continue to campaign for peace, security, and respect for their rights and dignity.
Dr. Jane Kani Edward is Clinical Assistant Professor of African and African American Studies and Director of African Immigration Research, Fordham University, Bronx New York. She is the Author of Sudanese Women Refugees: Transformations and Future Imaginings, 2007. She can be reached at [email protected]