For over a year, the world has watched the perpetual political and ethnic battles that took place in Tigray, the northernmost part of Ethiopia. As a result, horrific mass atrocities and long-standing disputes were uncovered. The armed conflict began in November 2020 when the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, sent the Ethiopian National
Forces (ENDF) into the Tigray region. The motive behind it was to unify the nation by enhancing the power of the central government while taking away power from autonomous regions like Tigray and its regional government called the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The rise in brutalities has since resulted in one of the most vicious hostilities, marked by rape, gang rape, sexual slavery, sexual violence, and torture against women and girls. This blog post serves to lay out the brutality in action as well as provide an insight on how the affected civilians are coping with their conditions in Tigray.
According to the reports emerging since late 2020, appalling sexual violence has been confirmed and has been on the rise. It has widely been used as a weapon of war against the Tigrayan women and children to impose long lasting physical and psychological damage. According to many survivors witnessing rapes of other women, the widespread sexual violence is intended to oppress as well as abase the victims and their ethnic groups.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) on gender-based violence in Tigray
According to a recent report titled “Tigray Gender Analysis and Key Findings” published by the IRC, a global humanitarian aid relief and non-governmental development organization based in New York City, gender-based violence consisting of sexual harassment, assault, and rape, is still ongoing in the conflicted region and various factors contribute to this. This report analyzes the conflict’s influence on the women and children of Tigray while casting light on the crucially needed humanitarian aid and emergency protocols that should be in place to serve the affected population’s specific needs.
The recent analysis based on the data collected between late February and early April 2021 by the IRC reveals that women and girls across the region are being exploited to widespread abuse. While the reporting by NGOs and media has been scarce, sexual exploitation has been on the rise as many women are being sexually exploited in order to meet their basic needs and food for their children. Lack of food and resources has had delirious effects on women’s physical and mental health, which has also led many women, especially single, divorced, widowed, and household heads, to engage in sexual acts in exchange for small amounts of cash for basic necessities. They are receiving as little as $1.25 for sexually exploitive relationships and this practice is particularly common in refugee-populated areas, such as Bada or the Mai-Aini refugee camp. On top of this, this practice is rising due to the breakdown of women’s social support networks, the loss of traditional forms of livelihoods, and gender-related inequalities. In spite of this, sexual exploitation is continuously being practiced as a necessity for survival, all while aggravating the ill-treatment of women’s bodies.
With the IRC’s report indicating that sexual harassment is continuously taking place, numerous factors contribute to it such as the increased exposure to and normalization of GBV and sexual violence, lack of economic alternatives for women, and an emphasis on the basic necessities which sideline significant conversations of GBV. The lack of functioning GBV reporting mechanisms also contributes to the ongoing conflict as it results in many survivors fearing repercussions if they report any sexual violence incidents.
The report's findings also suggest that there are limited services for survivors available for survivors, including medical assistance, psychosocial support, and safe places. Women are tremendously suffering from their physical and mental health deteriorating as they are left with childcare burden, intimate partner violence, lack of social support, and experiences with Gender-Based Violence.
What should be done?
Urgent funding and delivery of life-saving services that support survivors of gender-based violence must be prioritized by the international community. Women who are assaulted are in dire need of multiple levels of care, including emergency contraceptives, and drugs to prevent HIV in addition to psychological support. In order to combat the fear that survivors face upon reporting incidents of misconduct, there needs to be specialized services programs that are strengthened, while maintaining the survivors’ safety, confidentiality, and privacy. Accordingly, urgent assistance is required for the coverage of essential services.
The full report by the IRC can be found at:
Take Action - Ways you can help support the survivors across the conflict
Donate:
Make a donation to the Conflict Response Fund to help at-risk women in Tigray
Make a donation to the International Rescue Committee today to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover and gain control of their future
Make a donation through the United Nations Populations Funds. UNFPA is on the ground in over 150 countries, supporting the most vulnerable with life-saving services.
Make a donation to Omna Tigray, a nonprofit nonpartisan global organization in the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia with a purpose to effectively advocate for an end to the war, call for unrestricted humanitarian aid to the Tigrayan people, and promote the economic development of Tigray.
Political and Social Campaigns
Text 50409 ‘SIGN PGOSNF’ → To support Amendment 555 to H.R. 4350. It requests the US administration to determine whether genocide or crimes against humanity have occurred in Ethiopia’s Tigray region. To read more about amendment 555, read here
Make a call to a government official to take action against the Tigray Genocide. Phone script link also contains a list of government officials to call.
Petition to Sanction Ethiopia to promote the ability to hold the Ethiopian Government accountable for tormenting and traumatizing its citizens.
Petition to congress to do everything in their power to stop the war on Tigray, Ethiopia