Urgent Appeals Rise Against Sexual Violence in Tigray Conflict
Prominent figures, including former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and Booker prize nominee Tsitsi Dangarembga, have joined forces by signing two compelling letters, urging immediate global intervention in response to alarming accounts of sexual violence in Tigray.
In one letter, over 50 women of African descent demand an urgent ceasefire, expressing profound distress over reports of African women and girls enduring violence and rape amidst the conflict.
Another letter, endorsed by Clark, former UK development secretary Hilary Benn, Green party MP Caroline Lucas, and over 60 activists, implores the UN Security Council to establish a tribunal to investigate allegations of sexual violence in Ethiopia’s northern region, classifying it as a war crime or a crime against humanity.
“The failure of the international community to act would jeopardize the strides made in combating sexual violence in conflict,” the letter states, emphasizing the urgent need for accountability and justice for the women of Tigray.
The conflict erupted in Tigray on November 4th last year when Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed deployed troops to remove the regional government of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
Reports of horrific sexual violence have surfaced, primarily targeting women and girls, indicating deliberate attacks by Ethiopian soldiers and their Eritrean allies.
The letters stress that these assaults are not random but are ethnically motivated, with the intention of rendering Tigrayan women infertile, constituting a grave violation of international humanitarian laws.
Despite this, perpetrators have yet to face justice, leaving the women of Tigray without recourse.
The letter signed by Dangarembga, along with prominent figures like anti-female genital mutilation campaigner Nimco Ali and Chineke! Orchestra founder Chi-chi Nwanoku, calls for a ceasefire, increased humanitarian aid, and an independent justice mechanism in Tigray.
It condemns the silence of African leaders and underscores the urgent need for action to address the crisis of conflict-related sexual violence.
This weekend, activists are launching a social media campaign with hashtags #endsexualviolenceintigray, #endrapeinwar, and #believeblackwomen, alongside an online conference focusing on strategies to combat wartime sexual violence worldwide.
Danait Tafere, a conflict analyst and former resident of Tigray, stresses the need for grassroots action, attributing the lack of response to racism and the systemic neglect of black women’s rights.