UNifeed: DARFUR / FEMALE PEACEKEEPERS

DARFUR / FEMALE PEACEKEEPERS

Many victims of the Darfur conflict are women suffering rape and other abuse, but these crimes often go unreported because of traditions and religious practices. Female police advisors like Lubasi Matakala from Zambia and Rashida Sultana from Bangladesh, who serve with the United Nations Africa Union mission in Darfur (UNAMID), are playing a major role in breaking these barriers. UNAMID

Duration:04:30Date:25 May 2009

Categories:

MAINTENANCE OF PEACE AND SECURITY, ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN, SUDAN, United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur

Downloads:

Broadcast-quality video for UNifeed stories is available online for two weeks. Should you wish to request older material, please contact the agency source of the material. For UNTV or peacekeeping stories, please contact the UN Video Library.

Full Script

STORY: DARFUR / FEMALE PEACEKEEPERS   
TRT: 4.30
SOURCE: UNAMID
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 14 MAY 2009, ABSHOUK CAMP, NORTH DARFUR, SUDAN / FILE

SHOTLIST:

14 MAY 2009, ABSHOUK CAMP, NORTH DARFUR, SUDAN

1.	Wide shot, UN peacekeepers inside Abshouk camp 
2.	Med shot, Sergeant Lubasi Matakala with other female peacekeepers talking to Darfur woman
3.	Close up, Lubasi Matakala
4.	Med shot, Darfur woman talking to UNAMID female peacekeepers
5.	Wide shot, UNAMID female peacekeepers walking inside Abshouk camp
6.	Med shot, peacekeepers walking in camp
7.	Med shot, Lubasi Matakala seated inside house with a Darfur girl
8.	Close up, girl talking to peacekeepers
9.	Med shot, peacekeepers listening
10.	Med shot, Lubasi Matakala walking out of the house
11.	SOUNDBITE (English) Sergeant Lubasi Matakala, Gender Police Advisor, United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID):
“They are so stressed and depressed in these IDPs [camps], therefore we come in, try to give them morale and support in all angles of life and that’s why we are here trying to console the depressed and the oppressed.” 
12.	Wide shot, Darfur women in the market
13.	Med shot, Darfur woman in market
14.	Wide shot, peacekeeper on armored personnel carrier
15.	Wide shot, Darfur women at a water point
16.	Med shot, peacekeepers talking to women at the water point
17.	Close up, peacekeepers talking to a woman
18.	Close up, Darfur woman
19.	Med shot, peacekeepers talking to woman with a child
20.	Wide shot, Rashida Sultana shaking hands with Darfur woman
21.	SOUNDBITE (English) Rashida Sultana, Head of Community Policing Unit, United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID):
“What I see in Darfur, the women are really facing many problems, but there are more comfortable to discuss these things with other women not with men. So I think if we bring more and more women peacekeepers in Darfur and in other missions, it will have multiplier effects. Because most of the officers we come from, I myself come from Bangladesh we are from developing countries and our countries we are also getting empowered, we are getting some economical emancipation and in these economy, they see that there are many role models before their eyes, so you know when their girls are growing and getting their education, they will also see that,  okay , I can be like her, I can be a leader  in future, so we can intercate ??? dreams of the women in Darfur . That’s why I believe that UN headquarter should bring more and more women in peacekeeping mission because it will have multiplier effect both back in their country and both in the mission.”
 
FILE – 8 MARCH 2008, ELFASHER TOWN, NORTH DARFUR, SUDAN

22.	Wide shot, UNAMID peacekeepers walking in the streets with banners reading "Empower women for better tomorrow" 
23.	Med shot, female peacekeeper displaying poster reading "Together to reduce violence against women" 
24.	Wide shot, women peacekeepers handing out T-shirts, posters reading "Invest in women and girl child", and pamphlets to Darfurians in the market 
25.	Various shots, Darfurian woman with poster

STORYLINE:

Thirty-one-year old Sergeant Lubasi Matakala has been in the Zambian police service for the last ten years. As a police detective she believes that her calling is to maintain law and order even beyond borders.

In November 2008, Lubasi got posted to United Nations Africa Union mission in Darfur (UNAMID). She was delighted her dreams had become a reality to serve internationally, but she was even more driven by an interest in helping the women of Darfur, whom she had only seen images of on television reports.

The western part of Sudan has been on the international news since war broke out six years ago. In 2003, rebels in Darfur took up arms against government forces, and the UN says that as a result of the fighting, perhaps 300,000 people have died and as many as 2.5 million have fled their homes to camps for internally displaced people (IDPs).

Lubasi, who serves as a gender police advisor in UNAMID, is on patrol in Abshouk camp, one of the largest camps for IDPs in North Darfur. The police advisors patrol the areas in and around the camp interacting with the locals, gathering information and investigating cases on domestic violence and rape.

This has not been an easy task, especially in a conservative society like Darfur. Most victims of the Darfur conflict are women who get exposed to human right abuses. Factors such as traditions and religious practices keep them from seeking legal redress, and often these crimes go unreported.

UNAMID female police advisors like Lubasi have played a major role in breaking down barriers, and more women are coming forth to report cases and seek counseling.

SOUNDBITE (English) Sergeant Lubasi Matakala, Gender Police Advisor, United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID):
“They are so stressed and depressed in these IDPs [camps], therefore we come in, try to give them morale and support in all angles of life and that’s why we are here trying to console the depressed and the oppressed.”

Abshouk camp holds more than 75,000 people and lacks administration. Efforts to maintain law and order have become the duty of men and women working for UN police in Darfur.

IDP camps across Darfur have been militarized, with former combatants, vigilantes, and other paramilitary groups mixing with the civilian population. With the proliferation of arms, there’s been a rise in violence - crimes which the local police are not able to handle because they are neither trusted nor accepted in many camps.

One solution that is yielding some positive results is community policing: UN-trained volunteers from the various communities within the camps, who work closely with the UN police.

Rashida Sultana heads the community policing unit in Darfur. She believes that female police advisors have the advantage to empower the women of Darfur and be a role model for the young girls in the camps.

SOUNDBITE (English) Rashida Sultana, Head of Community Policing Unit, United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID):
“What I see in Darfur, the women are really facing many problems, but there are more comfortable to discuss these things with other women not with men. So I think if we bring more and more women peacekeepers in Darfur and in other missions, it will have multiplier effects. Because most of the officers we come from, I myself come from Bangladesh we are from developing countries and our countries we are also getting empowered, we are getting some economical emancipation and in these economy, they see that there are many role models before their eyes, so you know when their girls are growing and getting their education, they will also see that, okay, I can be like her, I can be a leader in future, so we can intercate ??? dreams of the women in Darfur. That’s why I believe that UN headquarter should bring more and more women in peacekeeping mission because it will have multiplier effect both back in their country and both in the mission.”

In Darfur, the peacekeepers have used every opportunity to relay their messages, on occasion handing out T-shirts and posters to townsfolk in an effort to sensitize communities on violence against women.

According to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, rape and sexual violence remain “systematic and widespread” in Darfur, with children and women in and around refugee and IDP camps especially vulnerable.

Breadcrumb Trail

DARFUR / FEMALE PEACEKEEPERS

UNifeed Archive

UNifeed Outlook

About

Connect to Unifeed

Connect to UNTV

Other UNTV Products