Africa | Sudan | Activism

Letter from Africa: How ‘cheating husbands’ are linked to Sudan’s protests

Unprecedented numbers of women are taking to the streets to join daily nationwide protests that erupted in mid-December. Despite a violent crackdown by the security forces and reports of sexual harassment, they remain undeterred. More than 50 people are thought to have died at the hands of security agents and many have been tortured, rights groups say. Yet women make up 70% of marchers at some protests, observers say, defiant in the face of the repressive laws of the conservative, Islamic state.

Africa | Sudan | Crimes

A HEMLINE IS NOT A CRIME: 10 Women at risk of flogging for “indecent” clothing

Source: Amnesty International

Sudan's Public Order Police have charged 10 female Christian students with 'indecent dress, and subjected them to humiliation during their detention. On June 25, Sudan's Public Order Police stopped 12 female Christian students in front of the Evangelical Baptist Church where they had attended a ceremony. They were wearing trousers and skirts. The students were charged with "indecent dress" under Article 152 of Sudan's 1991 Criminal Act. Two were released. The students were subjected to degrading treatment and humiliating verbal abuse during their detention. They were released on bail on

Africa | Sudan | Culture

Tackling taboos: Women’s football in Sudan

Source: Aljazeera

On a dusty pitch, a team called The Challenge is facing just that as it seeks to represent Sudan internationally. Under the blistering afternoon sun, two footballers train on a dusty, uneven pitch. Planes heading to the nearby Khartoum airport pass overhead, but nothing can pierce the stifling heat of this shadeless spot of parched, rocky earth. "We used to hold our training sessions in the grassy outdoor court there," says Sara Edward, a 29-year-old wearing shorts and a long-sleeved T-shirt, pointing to a building just metres away. "Then the facility owners accused us of destroying the tre

Africa | Sudan | Culture

South Sudan: The Truth About the Lies – Women, Violence and the AU Commission of Inquiry Report

Source: AllAfrica

'Women are the pride of our families and societies,' we were told. 'Many cows will be paid for you'. It is said with pride - the way it has always been and the way it must be. The intention is for the cultural systems to link families and communities together and ensure a girl is married into a family that will value her as much hers. It is said that the culture is unchangeable and where it has been transformed, it is blamed on war but still, it must be respected. Rape, sexual harassment, forced and early marriage and exploitation have become so common that the things we have been told a