Founded in early 1994 the Sudanese Womens' Voice for Peace (SWVP) have
continued to work at the grassroots level with women, the church and community
leaders in order to create constructive dialogue among the warring parties of
Southern Sudan. The group came together to champion for the plight of women,
children, the aged and the disabled whom they recognized had suffered and
continue to suffer most in the ongoing armed conflict in Southern Sudan.
With an initial workshop to consolidate ideas in August 1994, the group
resorted to using workshops, seminars and publicity campaigns including a
monthly newsletter in their endeavour to reach the Sudanese community both in
Southern Sudan and in exile, their primary aim being peace-making and conflict
resolution.
The group which is non political and non partisan brings women together from
all parts of Southern Sudan with an overall goal of training, developing and
mobilizing women leaders to plan and manage conflict resolution and peace
initiatives at all levels; regional and international.
Upon the formation of the group the following aims were put forward:
- To voice the concerns of women, children, aged and disabled in war-torn
areas through the media and other channels of communication.
- To mobilize and train community leaders both men and women (especially
women) in leadership and peace-making.
- To sensitize the Sudanese community (particularly the women) on the effects
of war and the importance of achieving peace and justice in the country.
To identify and address the constraints and obstacles to womens participation
and involvement in the peace process in Sudan.
The Sudanese women insist on addressing issues such as lack of food, shelter,
clothing, human rights violations-rape and the problem of refugees. Back in
their country, Sudan, they cite issues such as enrollment of minors as child
soldiers and inter-ethnic violence as some of the main issues they are
addressing.
The group came together on realising the lack of commitment in seeking a non-
violent solution to the Sudanese conflict. To this date they continue to
campaign for non violent means of finding solutions to the Sudan question.
In their work in Southern Sudan the SWVP hope to build confidence in their
fellow women and the entire Sudanese society to speak out against the current
military violence while exposing its negative consequences. They also hope to
keep the agenda of the Sudanese alive at regional and international levels.
Sudanese Womens Voice For Peace,
C/O People for Peace,
P. O. Box 14877
Tel/Fax 254 2 441372
Nairobi-Kenya
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