Women in Sudan: Silenced by War, Abandoned by Law

By Mumbi Mugo, Program Officer, Legal Equality and Esther Waweru, Senior Legal Advisor, Legal Equality

Forced to Flee: The Unrelenting Toll of Conflict

“My transition from Sudan to Chad was brutal, marked by uncertainty and an overwhelming sense of sadness. I witnessed violence and human rights violations against my community, including rape, killing, burning, displacement, and torture of women, children, men, and even animals. The scenes were indescribable, akin to Judgment Day.”

These are the harrowing words of Zahra, one of the many Sudanese women and men who have been forced to flee their homeland. Their experience is one of horror, devastation, and unimaginable suffering.

War and Oppression: A System that Fails Women

As the current conflict in Sudan nears its second anniversary in April 2025, the country faces widespread destruction, significant civilian casualties, and an unparalleled humanitarian crisis. The violence has devastated Sudanese communities, compounding pre-existing economic and political challenges. Most notably, the ongoing war has increased the risk of Sudan’s fragmentation, with rival armed groups and the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) each controlling different territories.

At the heart of this crisis are Sudanese women and girls—bearing the brunt of war, systemic discrimination, and entrenched legal inequalities. With the conflict, political instability, and economic turmoil, the marginalization of women has only deepened.  Their voices are silenced not only by the brutality of war but also by a legal system that continues to fail them.

Women and War: A Pattern of Gender-Based Violence

Sudan’s history is marred by recurring conflicts—from the Darfur crisis to the South Sudanese secession and now the ongoing military clashes. In each chapter, women have not only been caught in the crossfire but also targeted for gender-based violence. Rape, sexual slavery, and human trafficking are used as weapons of war—methods of terror designed to destroy communities and erase cultural identities.

Sudan’s history of war is not just about power and land—it is a story of women, their bodies, their lives, and their futures being torn apart.

With every eruption of conflict, Sudanese women have been subjected to heinous sexual violence and other human rights violations. During the 2018 revolution, women played a pivotal role, even as they continued to endure systemic oppression. In Darfur, a region particularly devastated by recurrent conflicts, women and girls continue to suffer from atrocities and blatant disregard for their human rights.

Sadly, this violence is not confined to the battlefield; it follows women into refugee camps, where displacement exposes them to further abuse. Even during moments of relative calm between waves of fighting, the normalization of sexual violence in conflict zones persists, leaving survivors with little to no legal recourse.

The world must recognize this reality: for Sudanese women, war is not only fought on battlefields—it is fought against their very existence.

Denied Justice: Legal Barriers to Equality

Legal protection is integral to achieving gender equality and redressing violations. The contribution of national, regional and international legal frameworks towards accelerating gender equality cannot be ignored. While Sudan has taken some steps in recent years to address gender equality—especially following the 2019 revolution—the lack of ratification of the Maputo Protocol underscores the nation’s ongoing failure to implement comprehensive protections for women. The result? Sudanese women remain abandoned by their own legal system.

The Maputo Protocol, a landmark African Union treaty adopted in 2003, is a powerful legal instrument that aims to protect women from violence, discrimination, and harmful traditional practices while promoting gender equality in all aspects of life, including political participation, education, healthcare, and economic rights.

Urgent Action Needed: A Demand for Accountability

The international community must continue to hold Sudan accountable for its violation of women’s rights. Human rights organizations, foreign governments, and international institutions must push for an end to the ongoing conflict, improved humanitarian support and tangible legal and political reforms. These efforts must be sensitive to the unique challenges women in conflict zones face, providing not only legal support but also economic aid, healthcare (including sexual and reproductive health services), and safe spaces for women to rebuild their lives.

Sudan must urgently commit to ending the conflict, protecting women from the consequences of war, and redressing the human rights violations they have endured. This includes ratifying and fully implementing the Maputo Protocol and other international human rights instruments. This would not only strengthen legal protections but also send a clear message to Sudanese women: their voices matter, their rights are valued, and their fight for justice is not in vain.

A Call for Solidarity

In March, the world commemorated Women’s Month, and as we continue to celebrate the resilience of women worldwide, we must amplify the voices of those whose struggles remain unseen. Sudanese women have resisted, survived, and fought for justice despite overwhelming odds. It is time for the world to stand in solidarity with them.

We must demand action, raise awareness, and push for meaningful reforms. Because no woman should be silenced by war. No woman should be ignored by the law. And no woman should stand alone in the fight for her rights and dignity.