With much gratitude to The New Republic for running with something that no one else wanted to touch, here is the article that pulls together what was the most salient issue from my recent time in Darfur: the collapse of services for women who have been raped.
It is desperately under-reported; in part due to the reasons I had difficulty getting interest in this piece – there is a perception that this is an “inside baseball” issue that is not of interest to a general audience, but to an even greater extent due to the security issues that arise from even trying to talk about the reality of the situation. In this regard, I’m also hugely grateful to the women and the humanitarians who both trusted me enough to talk about this, as well as to those who provided guidance on striking the right balance between getting this information out and protecting those who are on the ground.
It is my sincere hope that advocates can leverage this information to carefully, cautiously, and in a way that frames services for women who have been raped as integral to a comprehensive humanitarian response (rather than as an “add-on” human rights issue that is beyond the humanitarian mandate), build much-needed attention to this issue . . .
You’ve written an important, important article. Thanks so much for being a strong voice for Darfuri women, Bec.