CIAO DATE: 06/2011
April 2011
Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
The United Nations Mission in Eastern Chad and the Central African Republic (MINURCAT) was established to protect civilians and contribute to rule of law and regional peace in the conflict-prone region bordering Darfur. The mission was dismantled towards the end of 2010. This report, based on fieldwork undertaken in Chad in 2009, addresses the situation of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) against refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) in eastern Chad and difficulties MINURCAT encountered in its response to such violence. Many of the SGBV cases are reported being committed when women leave camps and sites to fetch firewood, water etc. However, many of the reported cases are also committed inside the camps and sites by family members, neighbours etc. An important part of the combat against SGBV has thus been to sensitize the targeted population on harmful customs and human rights violations. This has been especially important for the various gender and women committees in the refugee camps. A major objective throughout the mission has been to establish a national community policing, which eventually came into being in 2008 under the name of the Détachement intégré de sécurité (DIS). The DIS is maintaining the rule of law in the refugee camps, IDP sites and key towns within a 10 km radius. The staff has been gender-trained and all of the units have a gender focal point. Throughout the field visit, however, it was argued that the important work of DIS was being hampered by a dysfunctioning judicial system. Furthermore, victims of SGBV who report their cases to the DIS are vulnerable to reprisals. All aspects of community policing had not been addressed within DIS. The only aspect that had been addressed was gender, with the consequence that the gender office carried out most of the community policing. The gender units within DIS seemed to function.
Resource link: Somewhere to Turn? MINURCAT and the Protection of Civilians in Eastern Chad and Darfur [PDF] - 1.1M