Banjul, 9 August 2019: IHRDA and partner Darfur Bar Association (DBA) on 3 August 2019 launched a database of legal resources related to Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in Sudan.
The Sudan SGBV database marks an addition to the countries on the online database for laws and court judgments related to SGBV in African countries, which was launched by IHRDA in 2015 and available at https://sgbv-ihrda.uwazi.io/ in English, French and Arabic. Other countries on the database are Kenya, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali and The Gambia.
The primary aim of this database is to facilitate access to legal resources necessary to support efforts of domestic, regional and international actors and stakeholders in curbing SGBV.
The launching ceremony for the Sudan database was attended by lawyers, journalists, women’s rights activists and legal scholars in Sudan.
In prelude to the launching, IHRDA held a workshop with the participants on engaging with mechanisms of the African Union, notably the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, concerning human rights violations in Sudan. Participants also discussed envisaged reforms in Sudan and opportunities for DBA and civil society actors to participate in the processes.
The Sudan SGBV database project and the side workshop were funded by United States Institute of Peace (USIP).