AFRICAN CENTRE FOR JUSTICE AND PEACE STUDIES INC

The following are some of the accomplishments of ACJPS in 2024:ADVOCACY PROGRAMMEThe ACJPS Advocacy Programme leverages numerous advocacy missions andcommunication efforts, engagement from regional and international humanrights mechanisms, as well as from policymakers and decision-makers, toadvocate for accountability for human rights violations in Sudan. During thesemissions, regional and international leaders are made aware of these violations, and data-driven policy proposals are submitted to human rights bodies to address the ongoing atrocities and abuses in Sudan.In 2024, ACJPS conducted two advocacy missions, i.e., the 57th and 81st ordinary sessionsa). Advocacy at the 57th ordinary session of the HRC From September 30 to October 9, 2024, ACJPS conducted an advocacy mission at the 57th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, with four delegation members in attendance: two ACJPS staff and two representatives from Sudanese civil society organizations. While in Geneva, the delegation attended a session on Sudan on Tuesday, September 10, where the Human Rights Council discussed the report from the International Fact-Finding Committee on Sudan. The session featured Mr. Mohamed Chandi, Chairman of the Fact-Finding Committee; the Sudanese Attorney General; the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights; the UN Secretary-General's Advisor on Genocide; and Dr. Abdul Salam Sayed Ahmed, Chairman of the Sudanese Human RightsMonitors. Representatives from over fifty countries and ten non-governmental human rights organizations made oral interventions during the Interactive Dialogue with the High Commissioner. The delegation planned to deliver an oral statement during the Interactive Dialogue with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. However, due to time constraints, the Human Rights Council allowed only 10 NGOs to make oral interventions, and ACJPS was not one of them.The Core Group, which includes the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, andNorway, drafted a resolution to renew the mandate for the Fact-Finding Mission toSudan. Voting on this resolution began on Wednesday, October 9, and concluded on Friday, October 11, 2024. During this voting period, the UN Human Rights Counciladopted Resolution (A/HRC/57/L.22), renewing the mandate of its fact-finding mission to Sudan. The resolution was adopted by a wider margin (23 states in favor, 12 against) compared to when the UN Human Rights Council established it (19 in favor, 16 against) in 2023. This resolution allows the Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan to continue its work for at least another year. The renewal followed persistent advocacy by ACJPS, FIDH, and other organizations through meetings with core groups of the UN HRC and designated states during advocacy missions to Geneva, Switzerland. During the meetings mentioned above, the delegation discussed the following messageswith the advocacy targets:1.A call to renew the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission 1. for another year.2.A call for ceasefire negotiations between the warring parties and to reopen humanitarian corridors.3.A call for sustainable peace and democratization in Sudan.4.A call for the protection of civilians and an extension of the arms embargo to the rest of Sudan.5.A call to the UN Human Rights Council for accountability regarding human rightsThe delegation participated in a coordination meeting organized by Freedom House at the Defend Defenders office in Geneva. The meeting involved international and national NGOs, and participants discussed the joint advocacy messages. The delegation also attended a briefing by the Fact-Finding Mission for NGOs on the Human Rights Council session and the findings of their report. b). Advocacy at the 81st session of the ACHPRACJPS participated in an advocacy mission to Banjul, The Gambia, during the 81st Ordinary Session of the ACHPR in October 2024. During the mission, several key outputs related to Sudan were achieved:One (1) draft resolution on Sudan was tabled during the NGO Forum, incorporatingcritical recommendations, particularly on the need to dispatch a FFM, though no formal resolution was adopted by the Forum.Engagements with ACHPR Commissioners included a dinner meeting on October 20,2024, with Hon. Commissioner Hatem Essaiem to discuss Sudan, during which briefingnotes detailing ACJPS activities and recommendations were shared.Similarly, a meeting was held on October 22, 2024, with Hon. Commissioner Janet tofocus on women's issues in Sudan, accompanied by joint briefing notes.Participation extended to monitoring all side events and plenary discussions on Sudan, as well as conducting individual meetings with Sudanese human rights defenders to address pressing issues such as the situation of Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad, civilian protection challenges, and strategies for future advocacy.One (1) oral statement on the Sudan crisis was delivered during the ACHPR session,emphasizing the urgency of addressing the crisis.Additionally, on 15 October 2024, ACJPS led a panel at the NGO Forum of the 81st session of the ACHPR. The Panel discussed the unraveling conflict in Africa, including lessons learned from the Sudan War and beyond. Panelists included Mr. Salih Mahmood Osman, the Chairperson of the Darfur Bar Association, and Mr. Mahammad Badawi, the ACJPS Director of Monitoring and Documentation. Mr. Badawi highlighted the patterns of the ongoing human rights violations in Sudan, identified the main perpetrators, and provided recommendations for fostering peace in Sudan.Furthermore, on 18 October 2024, ACJPS participated in a side event organized by theOpen Society Foundation. The event aimed to assess efforts to end the conflict andexplore the regional and international roles in bringing peace to Sudan. In addition to ACJPS, other panelists included the Chairperson of the High Panel on Sudan, the U.S.Special Envoy for Sudan, the Chairperson of the ACHPR, Commissioners of the ACHPR, and additional representatives from civil society organizations. The ACJPS representative discussed the need for intervention to prevent neighboring countries from supplying weapons to the warring parties, provide humanitarian support to refugees, and stressed the importance of accountability for human rights violations committed by the conflictingparties in Sudan.On 19 October 2024, ACJPS hosted a side event during the 81st ordinary session of the ACHPR focused on the use of sexual and gender-based violence as a war weapon in the Sudan war. The goals of the side event were to enhance the audience's understanding of the connection between war weapons and sexual and gender-based violence in conflict situations, to examine the effects of this violence on human rights in the conflict-affected regions of Sudan, to discuss strategies for preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based violence in armed conflict; and to identify ways to support educational initiatives addressing this issue in Sudan. The target audience included the ACHPR Commissioner on Sudan and other commissioners, as well as local and international NGOs working in Sudan, such as the Darfur Advocacy Group, SGBV specialists, policymakers, gender equality advocates, and conflict resolution experts. Ultimately, the side event raised stakeholders' awareness of the SGBV situation in Sudan, helped identify key challenges in addressing SGBV in conflict zones, and outlined action points for integratingSGBV awareness into education programs. Additionally, networking and collaborationopportunities for stakeholders were achieved.TrainingTraining day one greatly consisted of experience sharing. The participants were allowed toshare their experiences. For example, MS. Shema, one of the participants, shared some of the violations suffered by women in Sudan and mentioned that these range from sexual violations, discrimination, and gender-based violations, among others. She also listed some names of women who have been killed this womens month (March). She then commended female activists in Sudan for the work they do to promote and protect the rights of women, especially the female participants. During the brainstorming session, the participants shared some of the new patterns of violations to include; illicit arms and drugs and tribalism in the army, among others. Ms. Christine Kirabo from ACJPS also shared the human rights situation in Uganda, some of the challenges faced, and what lessons the participants can pick from the Ugandan context.Day two of the training was moderated by Ms. Sheila Muwanga who equipped theparticipants with the definitions, principles, and formats of documentation. During the afternoon session, the Participants were divided into three groups to discuss and present three incidents of human rights violations i.e. gender-based violence, freedom of association and assembly and enforced disappearance. During the presentations, the participants identified an incident and discussed the chal