Campaigns by civilians and SAF to designate Sudan’s RSF janjaweed militia as a terrorist organisation

NOTE from Sudan Watch Editor: Today, I signed the below mentioned petition calling for Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to be designated a terrorist organisation. I signed it hoping to help eradicate poverty, extreme poverty and suffering in Sudan, South Sudan and neighbouring countries. 

In Sudan, the RSF are trapping civilians in villages in RSF controlled areas by surrounding them and cutting off access to food and medicines, forcing them to drink water from the Nile, using them as human shields to protect themselves and deter bombings by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).

It must be noted that the SAF are responsible for many atrocities since the start of the Darfur rebellion in 2003. SAF chief Gen. Burhan’s dereliction of duty caused 120 peaceful protestors to be slain on the streets of Khartoum. 

*The "killing of at least 120 pro-democracy protesters in 2019 were a flashpoint between activists and the military. Sudanese pro-democracy protesters demanded the Transitional Military Council hand over power to civilians, but they were attacked by the military on June 3, 2019.

The killings, carried out by military forces in an effort to disperse a sit-in calling for civilian rule and democracy, marked a pivotal moment for Sudan after the April 2019 overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir.”

*Read full story at Al Jazeera, 3 June 2024, here:

What was the ‘Khartoum Massacre’ marked by Sudan’s activists?

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/6/3/what-was-the-khartoum-massacre-marked-by-sudans-activists

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Related Report

From Middle East Monitor

By Mohamed Suliman

Dated 06 November 2024 - excerpt:

There is a strong case for designating Sudan’s RSF militia as a terrorist organisation

A view of streets as clashes continue between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) despite the agreement on cease fire in Khartoum, Sudan on April 30, 2023 

[Ömer Erdem/Anadolu Agency]

Recently, there have been several social media campaigns and online petitions that call for the RSF’s designation. Individuals who are participating in these campaigns are sharing examples of incidents that expose how the RSF Janjaweed militia is attacking and harassing them. All of these grassroots initiatives demonstrate the public support for a terrorist designation of the militia”. 

Such a move will send a strong signal that the world rejects it and that the RSF can’t be part of Sudan’s political future. Moreover, it will have a practical impact on limiting the arms supply and funding from countries that back the militia, such as the UAE, which will be legally obliged to abstain from this destructive role.

Read more (and see its pale green share this icon to see dozens of ways to repost the article containing news of the campaigns and online petitions) here: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20241106-there-is-a-strong-case-for-designating-sudans-rsf-militia-as-a-terrorist-organisation/

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POSTSCRIPT from Sudan Watch Editor

Here is a comment by Musaab Yousif posted at above article 25 days ago. It tells a story almost identical to the one I've heard from someone in Sudan with family trapped inside a village surrounded by RSF and cut off from essential supplies and medicines, drinking polluted water from the Nile.

"The people of Hilaliya village in aljazeera state more than 3000 civilians including womens, children's, elders and peoples with chronic sickness are being held in three mosques a few meters away from their homes by RSF militia and are completely forbidden from reaching them. They are being ravaged by cholera, watery diarrhea, hunger and thirst... no medicine or food in a complete war crime by the RSF militia, in addition to the crimes of murder, looting and other violations committed by the militia against defenseless civilians to any one trying to get out .

#Save_Hilaliya_from_Janjaweed

#Rapid_Support_is_a_terrorist_organization"

___________________________

Weekly Sudan Updates

From journalist Abdallah Hussain posted at LinkedIn on 1 Dec 2024: 

🔴 Former Political Advisor to RSF Commander, Youssef Ezzat [pictured above]: The Islamic Movement is managing political and civil affairs in all areas under the control of the Rapid Support Forces with full authorization from the leadership.

🔴 Sovereign Council Chairman Al-Burhan denies rumors of political settlements, emphasizing no agreement with any entity. 

🔴 Health crisis deepens in Khartoum, with 73 out of 80 private hospitals out of service, according to the Sudanese Doctors Network.

🔴 Gunmen hijack a UNICEF truck in eastern Nile Khartoum carrying medicines and medical supplies.

🔴 Heavy artillery shelling shakes Omdurman’s Thawrat neighborhoods as early morning attacks continue. 

🔴 5 civilians injured following militia shelling in Karrari, Omdurman, as health authorities report more unregistered cases.

🔴 The Nile River State Security Committee denies reports of launching drones from residential areas near Atbara, labeling them as misinformation. 

🔴 Minister of Culture and Information Khalid Al-Ayser discusses plans to reform Sudanese media institutions and improve public messaging.

🔴 Broadcasting Authority reports $16 billion in losses due to militia attacks, with Minister Khalid Al-Ayser calling for international condemnation.

🔴 The Sudanese Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) for its recent allegations:

“We condemn the unfounded accusations and extreme bias against the government and the armed forces by the NRC.”

“The NRC Secretary-General unjustly implicated the armed forces in using starvation as a weapon and blocking humanitarian aid — a crime solely committed by the RSF militias.”

“The Secretary-General failed to name those responsible for destroying villages, employing scorched-earth policies, committing mass rapes, and other atrocities, which are well-documented crimes of the RSF militias.”

“The NRC’s Country Director in Sudan claimed before the UK’s House of Commons that humanitarian work regulations in Sudan are designed to obstruct aid delivery to those in need.”

“This aggressive stance by the NRC represents the worst example of politicizing humanitarian work and an attempt to tarnish the Sudanese government’s image internationally.”

🔴 The Federal Ministry of Health reported a rise in HIV/AIDS cases in Sudan, with 48,000 infections recorded. Of these, 19,549 individuals are aware of their condition, but only 8,607 are receiving treatment. The disease has caused 2,300 deaths. Minister Dr. Haitham Mohamed Ibrahim warned that the numbers could increase further due to violations by the RSF, including sexual assaults.

Source: Abdallah Hussain, LinkedIn

Bilingual Journalist | News Anchor | TV Host | News Correspondent | Content Creator

End

Proposed UN resolution on UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) would support Sudan’s peace efforts - Possible implications of COVID-19

NOTE from Sudan Watch editor: This is worrying. 17 years ago it took much work by thousands of people around the world to get peacekeepers into Darfur, western Sudan to help protect civilians and humanitarian aid. This month China has the presidency of the UN Security Council during which time several meetings on Sudan and South Sudan are expected. Reportedly, the Council is likely adopt a resolution establishing a follow-on presence of the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) by 31 March. 

The proposed resolution (I cannot find the draft resolution) would eliminate the main mission of UNAMID — the protection of civilians in Darfur. Here is the most worrying part: that responsibility would be handed over to the transitional government formed last August by the military and civilian protesters following the ouster of Sudan's president Omar al-Bashir. Read more below including possible implications of 2019–20 coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019–20_coronavirus_pandemic] on International Peace and Security.

Let's hope that the flow of humanitarian relief to people in need is not adversely affected. At least 5m people in South Sudan are suffering terrible poverty.

Apart from feeling sad about the pain and suffering caused by poverty and COVID-19, I hope that the pandemic will reset the world and peoples' hearts.

Astronaut Chris Hadfield, the first Canadian to walk in space who has flown two Space Shuttle missions and served as commander of the International Space Station (ISS), once said that what they think about when gazing out of the windows of their spaceship is where their loved ones are. Not worldly goods, only love.

Incidentally, according to Wikipedia [ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Hadfield ] Chris Hadfield is enthusiastic about the prospects for a manned mission to Mars, and when asked in 2011 if he would consider a one-way journey to Mars to be the first to visit, he said "I would be honoured to be given the opportunity."

On May 12, 2013, after handing over command of the ISS, but before returning home, Chris released a music video recorded on the ISS of a modified rendition of "Space Oddity" by David Bowie. As of January 2020, the video has over 45 million views on YouTube. Here is the video, filmed at a time when he could not be sure of his safe return to Earth. The lyrics are out of this world.

Proposed UN resolution would support Sudan’s peace efforts

Report from The Associated Press (AP)

By EDITH M. LEDERER and JUSTIN LYNCH

Dated Thursday 19 March 2020

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A proposed U.N. Security Council resolution would replace the joint U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force in Sudan’s restive Darfur region with a U.N. political and peace-building mission whose primary aim would be to support Sudan’s fragile transition to democracy including in drafting a new constitution and preparing for elections.

The draft resolution, obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press, would basically eliminate the main mission of the U.N.-AU force known as UNAMID — the protection of civilians in Darfur. That responsibility would be handed over to the transitional government formed last August by the military and civilian protesters following the ouster of the country’s longtime autocratic ruler Omar al-Bashir.

The proposed resolution would establish “a political, peace support and peace-building mission,” to be known as the United Nations Political and Peace-building Integrated Mission in Sudan or UNPPIMS, starting May 1 for an initial period of one year.

It would authorize the deployment of up to 2,500 international police and one battalion for a quick reaction force — usually between 500 and 800 troops — to protect U.N. personnel, facilities and humanitarian workers. The police and troops would also be authorized “to help create a protective environment by protecting civilians being subjected to or under imminent threat of physical violence, particularly in the hot spot areas of the Darfur states” — but the draft stresses that the government has primary responsibility for protecting its people.

The draft resolution largely follows the recommendations in a report to the council earlier this week by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and AU Commission Chair Moussa Faki.

Human Rights Watch criticized the report, saying withdrawing peacekeepers threatens the safety of civilians in Darfur.

Kenneth Roth, its executive director, said the council should recognize “that Darfur requires a far more gradual withdrawal” because “past and ongoing violence there means civilians can’t trust Sudanese security forces alone and still look to peacekeepers for protection.”

The Darfur conflict began in 2003 when ethnic Africans rebelled, accusing the Arab-dominated Sudanese government of discrimination. The government in Khartoum was accused of retaliating by arming local nomadic Arab tribes and unleashing them on civilian populations — a charge it denies.

In recent years, as the result of a successful government military campaign, the rebellion has been reduced to a rebel Sudan Liberation Army faction headed by Abdul Wahid Elnur in Jebel Marra.

There has been pressure, including from the Trump administration, to scale down the UNAMID force, which was established in 2007 and was one of the U.N.’s most expensive operations. In June 2016 it had a ceiling of 15,845 military personnel and 3,403 police.

In July 2018, the Security Council voted to dramatically cut the force in response to reduced fighting and improved security conditions.

The target then was to end the mission in June 30, 2020. But the mass street protests by a pro-democracy movement which began in late 2018 and led to last year’s ouster of Al-Bashir caused a delay.

A power-sharing agreement signed in August 2019 between the military and protesters called for the government to reach a peace agreement with armed groups within six months. The military-civilian government, which is facing an economic crisis, has been engaging in peace talks with rebel groups since October, hoping to end the insurgencies in order to slash military spending, which takes up much of the national budget.

The draft resolution would authorize the new U.N. mission, if asked, to support implementation of any future peace agreements including monitoring cease-fires, and supporting disarmament, demobilization and measures promoting accountability and transitional justice, not only in Darfur but also in conflict-wracked Blue Nile and South Kordofan states.

The report by Guterres and Faki said the overall security situation remained unchanged in most parts of Darfur, except West Darfur which experienced a series of violent incidents, though they reported “civil unrest” throughout the vast western region.

According to the report, UNAMID has developed “a drawdown and liquidation plan” that envisages the closure of its 14 bases between April and Oct. 31, the repatriation of military and police personnel, and a significant reduction of its civilian staff. It said this will be followed by administrative and logistical liquidation activities for a period of at least six months.

As of January, UNAMID had over 4,300 military personnel, over 2,100 international police, and about 1,500 civilian staff.

The draft resolution “underlines that a continued strategic and political partnership between the United Nations and the African Union in Sudan remains critical” and calls for close cooperation between UNPPIMS and UNAMID as well as with U.N. missions in South Sudan, Libya and in the disputed Abyei region between Sudan and South Sudan.

Lynch reported from Khartoum, Sudan

View Original: https://apnews.com/439923c48764b6d9470ac646fb69990c
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UN SECURITY COUNCIL MONTHLY FORECAST MARCH 2020

In March, China has the presidency. Several meetings on Sudan are expected. The Council is likely to adopt a resolution establishing a follow-on presence to UNAMID by 31 March. 

Prior to this, the Council expects to receive a briefing on the special report of the Secretary-General and the Chairperson of the AU Commission, followed by consultations. 

In addition, the chair of the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee, Ambassador Sven Jürgenson (Estonia), will provide the quarterly briefing on the committee’s work. 

Other meetings on African issues include South Sudan [ https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/monthly-forecast/2020-03/south-sudan-7.php ] an update on UNMISS and the renewal of the mission’s mandate.

View Original: https://www.securitycouncilreport.org/monthly-forecast/2020-03/overview-17.php

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THE WEEK AHEAD AT THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL

23 - 27 March 2020

On Thursday (26 March), the Council is scheduled to adopt several resolutions, although it is unclear whether (due to Coronavirus Covid-19 - see more below) this will be done via videoconferencing or in person. These include resolutions on the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID)

- - -

FROM THE ARCHIVES OF Insights Sudan (Darfur):

• UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID): Mandate Renewal
  Tomorrow (31 October), the Security Council is scheduled to adopt a resolution extending the mandate of the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) until 31 October 2020. The initial draft was circulated by the UK and Germany, the penholders on...
  posted on WED 30 OCT 2019
  
  UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) Mandate Renewal
  Tomorrow (27 June), the Security Council is scheduled to adopt a resolution extending the mandate of the UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) until 31 October. The initial draft was circulated by the UK and Germany, the penholders on Darfur,...
  posted on WED 26 JUN 2019
  
  AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur: Briefing and Consultations
  Tomorrow (14 June), Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix is scheduled to brief the Security Council on the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) and the special report of the Chairperson of the AU Commission and the UN Secretary-General on...
  posted on THU 13 JUN 2019
  
  AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur: Briefing and Consultations
  Tomorrow (17 April), the Security Council will be briefed on the Secretary-General’s latest 90-day report (S/2019/305) on the AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) by Joint Special Representative and head of UNAMID Jeremiah Mamabolo (via video-teleconference from Khartoum). Assistant Secretary-General...
  posted on TUE 16 APR 2019
  
  AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur: Briefing and Consultations
  On Monday (25 February), the Security Council will be briefed by Assistant Secretary-General for Africa Bintou Keita on the Secretary-General’s 90-day report (S/2019/44) on the AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). The briefing will be followed by consultations, which may...
  posted on SUN 24 FEB 2019
  
  Sudan Sanctions Regime Renewal
  This afternoon (7 February), the Security Council is set to adopt a resolution extending the mandate of the Panel of Experts assisting the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee until 12 March 2020. The US, the penholder on Sudan sanctions, circulated a...
  posted on THU 7 FEB 2019
  
  Sudan Sanctions Committee Briefing
  Tomorrow (17 January), Ambassador Joanna Wronecka (Poland), chair of the 1591 Sudan Sanctions Committee, is expected to provide the quarterly briefing to the Security Council on the work of the Committee. The briefing will be public, continuing Poland’s practice of...
  posted on WED 16 JAN 2019
  
  AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur: Briefing and Consultations
  On Monday (22 October), Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix is scheduled to brief the Security Council on the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) and the Secretary-General’s 90-day report (S/2018/912). The briefing will be followed by consultations. The Secretary-General’s...
  posted on FRI 19 OCT 2018
  
  UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) Mandate Renewal
  Tomorrow (13 July), the Security Council is scheduled to adopt a resolution renewing the mandate of the UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) until 30 June 2019. This follows the 29 June adoption of resolution 2425, a technical rollover of...
  posted on THU 12 JUL 2018
  
  Central African Republic and Sudan: Informal Interactive Dialogue on Joint AU-UN Visit
  Tomorrow (18 April), Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix and AU Commissioner for Peace and Security Smail Chergui (via VTC) are expected to brief Council members in an informal interactive dialogue on their joint visit to Sudan and the Central...
  posted on TUE 17 APR 2018
• 
  Sudan (Darfur): Briefing and Consultations on UNAMID and the 1591 Sanctions Committee
  Tomorrow morning (14 March), the Security Council is expected to hold a briefing on the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). Joint Special Representative for Darfur and head of UNAMID Jeremiah Mamabolo is expected to brief (via VTC) on the...
  posted on TUE 13 MAR 2018
  
  AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID): Presidential Statement
  Tomorrow (31 January), the Security Council is scheduled to adopt a presidential statement on the AU/UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). The initial draft was circulated by the UK as penholder to the full Council on Monday (22 January). After...
  posted on TUE 30 JAN 2018
  
  UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur Mandate Renewal
  Tomorrow (29 June), the Security Council is scheduled to renew the mandate of the UN-AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) for an additional year. The draft was initially scheduled for adoption on 27 June; however, adoption was delayed due to...
  posted on WED 28 JUN 2017

UN DOCUMENTS ON DARFUR

Selected Security Council Resolutions	View All
11 FEBRUARY 2020S/RES/2508	This resolution extended the mandate of the Panel of Experts for one year.
31 OCTOBER 2019S/RES/2495	This resolution renewed UNAMID’s mandate until 31 October 2020.
27 JUNE 2019S/RES/2479	This resolution extended the mandate of UNAMID until 31 October 2019.

- - -

Possible implications of COVID-19 on International Peace and Security

Report from and by WHAT’S IN BLUE.org - Insights on the work of the UN Security Council

Dated Saturday 21 March 2020. Excerpt:

The novel coronavirus COVID-19 has since January already claimed over 12,950 lives globally and has had an impact on more than 180 countries and territories.

Since the highly contagious nature of this virus has prompted social distancing, the Council decided to postpone all of its meetings scheduled for the week of March 16. While the Council members made only one public statement during that period—a press statement on Central African Republic, agreed electronically—they spent the week testing video-conferencing. It remains unclear whether Council members will seek to meet in person during the current crisis.

Aside from its impact on the Council’s functioning, the current crisis has other potential impacts on international peace and security. First, the health of UN peacekeepers in missions that the Council authorises is likely to become a significant concern. This was the case with the two health crises that the Council has grappled with previously: HIV/AIDS and Ebola. 

However, unlike Ebola, which was concentrated in a specific region (West Africa in 2014-2015) or country (the Democratic Republic of the Congo more recently), COVID-19 is a global pandemic, and unlike HIV/AIDS, the onset of dire symptoms occurs within days or weeks. To help maintain the safety of peacekeepers, it may become essential to enhance the capacity in different missions to provide care in the field or medical evacuation as needed. Read more: https://www.whatsinblue.org/2020/03/possible-implications-of-covid-19-on-international-peace-and-security.php

Red Crescent Monitors HIV Rates in Eastern Sudan

SPEAKING to SRS at Wad Sharifay refugee camp on the outskirts of Kassala town on Wednesday, the Health Coordinator of the Sudanese Red Crescent Society, Dr. Badaradeen Badawi Mohammed, says that out of 600 tested people only 3 cases of HIV infection were reported. Full report here below.

Red Crescent Monitors HIV Rates in Eastern Sudan
From Sudan Radio Service (SRS) on Thursday, 18 February 2010:

(Wad Sharifay) - The Sudanese Red Crescent Society says that the rate of HIV infection in the refugees’ camps in Eastern Sudan is lower than the rates of towns like Kassala.

Speaking to SRS at Wad Sharifay refugee camp on the outskirts of Kassala town on Wednesday, the Health Coordinator of the Sudanese Red Crescent Society, Dr. Badaradeen Badawi Mohammed, says that out of 600 tested people only 3 cases of HIV infection were reported.

[Dr. Badaradeen Badawi Mohamed]: “At the VCT centre here more than 600 people have come to us and there are only three cases that were positive. There is cooperation between us and the Ministry of Health. If there are cases that need solutions, for example, a person may need antiretroviral drugs, we would refer them to the teaching hospital in Kassala where they receive treatment regularly. In fact now we need to carry out a survey in order to know the magnitude of the problem. Also we have a surveillance program where pregnant women come to the clinic and we take their blood samples and send it to the Federal Ministry of Health in order to test and record the rate of infection and truly we found out also that the rate was much lower than one percent in our camps. The rate of infection in camps is lower than in the city.”

Dr. Badawi denied accusations that the presence of refugees in Eastern Sudan is the cause of high rates of HIV prevalence in Kassala state.

[Dr. Badaradeen Badawi Mohamed]: “It is not true because refugees have been in camps years before HIV and AIDS were discovered. These refugees have been here in this area for more than thirty years. So they have been here before the disease was discovered but there are indicators among recent refuges and there was a need to carry out a survey amongst them in order to find out the prevalence rate. Of course the prevalence rate of HIV in Eritrea is higher than Sudan. Perhaps the new arrivals may have an impact but there is supposed to be an additional program for the new arrivals of refugees and they are now at the Shagarab area. There is an awareness programs and condoms are available at Shagarab."

He said the World Bank supports the HIV and AIDS awareness campaign amongst refugees in camps in Eastern Sudan through the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, IGAD.

US Embassy in Khartoum has organised an HIV/AIDS awareness workshop for 700 IDP students in Khartoum

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service December 4, 2009:

(Khartoum, Sudan) – The US Embassy in Khartoum has organized an HIV/AIDS awareness workshop for 700 IDP students in Khartoum.

Speaking to SRS during the workshop in Khartoum on Friday, the regional medical officer from embassy, Dr. Behzad Shahbazian, explained why the workshop was being organized for the students.

[Dr. Behzad Shahbazian]: “The goal of the programme was to reach out and educate the students in Khartoum about H-I-V and AIDS. Specifically what the disease is, how you can get it, how it is transmitted, ways to prevent it, the transmission of the disease and how you can protect yourself. Also to educate everyone about the available testing facilities here in Khartoum and in all of Sudan and also to let the students know that there is treatment available. HIV/AIDS is a problem, it is a big problem in Sub-Saharan Africa and the best way for someone to protect themselves from HIV/ AIDS is to educate themselves about it and to know the facts. To know what is right and what is wrong and to get tested if they feel they are at risk. I think that is the big message.”

Doctor Behzad Shahbazian was talking to Sudan Radio Service in Khartoum on Friday.

South Sudan: Up to 100,000 people in Lakes state risk infection from HIV/AIDS

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, December 2, 2009 by Mageng Wade:

(Rumbek) – The governor of Lakes state, speaking on World AIDS Day, says that up to 100,000 people in the state risk infection from the disease.

SRS correspondent, Mageng Wade, attended the World AIDS day event in Rumbek on Wednesday. He sent this report.

[Mageng Wade]: “The governor of Lakes state, Awet Akot, addressed Tuesday's gathering at Freedom Square saying that if a hundred thousand people in the state are infected with HIV/AIDS before the referendum, it will be a great loss to the state. Akot said that if AIDS spreads to the cattle camps and villages, it will be dangerous to the community, adding that people need to fight this expensive war regardless of who they are. He added that HIV/AIDS does not care whether you are a minister, governor, doctor or even a teacher; it kills everyone regardless of who you are. Statistics from the states shows that cases of HIV/AIDS are alarming and if people don’t exercise caution, then a quarter of the people might not vote during the elections and the referendum.”

That was SRS correspondent, Mageng Wade, reporting from Rumbek, Lakes state.

In Mundri, southern Sudan, HIV/AIDS infection is 3 per cent

From SRS - Sudan Radio Service, Tuesday, December 1, 2009:

(Khartoum - Mundri – Malakal – Wau) – Events were organized throughout Sudan on Tuesday to mark World AIDS Day.

Sudan has seen the rate of HIV/AIDS increase steadily in recent years with the number of cases accelerating dramatically, particularly in southern Sudan, since the end of the civil war in 2005.

Although people in northern Sudan are often reluctant to talk openly about the disease, according to the senior HIV/AIDS counselor in Al-Sahafa Hospital in Khartoum, Amna Abdelhalim Mohammed, increasing numbers of people are turning up voluntarily for testing at Voluntary Testing and Couseling centers.

[Amna Abdelhalim Mohammed]: “The numbers have increased. We started in 2003 and between then and 2009, the numbers have increased a lot. In the beginning, we used to handle one or two cases a month but now we test between 108 and 119 people every month. The results of the test used to show one or two HIV-positive people in a month but now up to thirteen a month are testing positive. The more people come for testing, the more the number of positive tests we get. Frankly, this number has increased and it is not a solution for us to keep burying our heads in the sand. We are supposed to have a complete center that gives treatment.”

In Western Equatoria, the number of HIV positive people has also increased over the years. Here, however, HIV/AIDS groups talk openly about the virus. The commissioner of Mundri West county, Bullen Abiter, urges the communities to continue going for tests to monitor their status.

[Bullen Abiter]: “In Mundri, the percentage of HIV/AIDS infection is 3 per cent. And this shows that AIDS has begun to get a grip. If someone has HIV/AIDS, that is not the end of everything. That person can still live like any other normal person if he or she takes their medication. The ARVs can make you live for even 15 to 20 years.

The important thing is that people should go for an HIV test. After the test, you will be advised on what to do.”

In Malakal, Angelo Michael Waan is the director-general of the Upper Nile AIDS Commission.

[Angelo Michael Waan]: “In Upper Nile state we don’t have statistics of people with HIV/AIDS because we didn’t do any research. But with the people coming to test for HIV in our centers, it indicates that there is an increase in numbers. So now we are urging our people to be tested so that we can know how many people are affected in our state. We are now working with schools in the awareness campaigns because AIDS is not just the responsibility of the Ministry of Health alone but it is also the responsibility of everyone and especially the media.”

Dominica Thomas is a student in Wau. She too stresses the importance of being tested for the disease.

[Dominica Thomas]: “If someone gets tested and didn’t get it in his or her body, I’ll say that that person doesn’t have the virus at that moment. But if people don’t want to get tested, I’ll say that everyone in Wau here has HIV, because it’s only when you get tested that you will know your HIV status. We have to fight HIV/AIDS because this is a very bad disease for our children, our fathers, and mothers and for all the generations, all over the world.”

World AIDS Day was organized in Sudan by NGOs working in the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS, Unicef and the GOSS Ministry of Health.

The theme for this year's event was “Universal Access and Human Rights”.