THE FARCHANA MANIFESTO: Darfur Refugee Women Risk Everything For Their Rights

Note: Ivan Gayton—interviewed here and in Darfur In Ten Minutes—is available to speak at your school or anywhere else. ivangayton@hotmail.com

In the summer of 2008, after a night of terror, a group of courageous Sudanese refugee women living in the Farchana refugee camp in eastern Chad wrote a 14-point document calling for their rights. It has come to be called the Farchana Manifesto.

Despite great danger, one of the women was willing to speak out on camera. My friend Ivan, who was doing humanitarian aid work in Chad, filmed this interview and brought it home. I (Pete) then interviewed Ivan, and with additional footage from a few generous others, put together this ten-minute piece.

The underlying message is this: Refugee camps are meant to be transitional. When they become what are called semi-permanent locations, they can become even greater refuges for hopelessness and violence—with women facing the brunt of the violence.

This is contrary to both human dignity and the stated goals of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which is to protect and support refugees and assist in their return or resettlement.

The main goal of the piece is to answer the women's plea to "bring this message to the outside world." It seems the least we can all do. Awareness is the first step.

I hope you find the piece inspiring and informative, and a call to action,

Pete McCormack,
February 2009

See also, for example, the UNHCR (www.unhcr.org) and Physicians for Human Rights (http://darfuriwomen.phrblog.org/intro), our Darfur In Ten Minutes on youtube and Mahmood Mamdani's The New Humanitarian Order (www.thenation.com/doc/20080929/mamdani).

Credits:

Ton Koene (www.tonkoene.nl) for his photos, Jacky Essombe (www.jackyessombe.com) for her voice, Karin Muller (www.take2videos.org) and Ivan for additional background footage, Stephen Cohen for the additional interview, thanks to Sarah Estacaille for the B-cam help, and Dr. Amin Jalloh (www.arabicgloballanguage.com) for translation.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Chad
• Darfur
• Sudan
• Farchana
• Farchana manifesto
• refugee
• women
• freedom of women
• women's rights
• human
• rights
• Africa
• torture
• Eastern Chad
• janjaweed
• conflict
• refugee status
• citizenship
• girls
• humanitarian

[supervirtuouswoman]

What did your ancestors do in order for you people to be treated like this?????

[supervirtuouswoman]

The men should be put to death!!!

[mandyraz]

They drink, they rape the women, and they gamble.

[iwusinger]

What do the men actually do?!

[lumbeewoman38]

can you beleive this

[BNAIDARFUR]

The explanation is simple , In Darfur , they are the majority Muslim, even though they are African. Islam was impose to them with the Arab invasion in the last centuries. In the Muslim culture it is normal for man to abuse their women. The new generation needs to be encouraged to go back to their indigenous African religion roots.

[ymarcil66]

What the Fuck?! not only are these women tortured by the arabs and Sundan Gov. but their own men who have suffered side by side with them at the hands of the Arabs and Gov., torture them also! I really did not know that the men who you think would understand their pain was doing this. I try to learn as much as I can about things like this but especially Darfur. But this I did not know. Thanks for the upload of info.!

[mowriter]

I take it these are the refugees, themselves, committing these beatings?

Is it fair, politically incorrect, or too TRUE to spell out the religion of the perpetrators of this torture?

I think I know the answer. And if it were MY particular faith, the perpetrators would be equally wrong.

[missbutter81]

thank you colonialism!

[pirjohelena]

There are so many women in the world who lead very hard lives....

I hope this inspires other women to also speak out...

I wish I had their courage!