Women in Southern Sudan have made some important strides in recent years to play a more significant role in governance. Most notably, a minimum quota requires that women hold 25 percent of government positions. However, reforms must go much deeper than this to address the many challenges in Southern Sudan that are unique to women.

And even positive recent changes are at risk of being rolled back or, at the least, stagnating if concerted efforts to promote the role of women are not undertaken.

The Southern Sudan Women’s Empowerment Network (SSWEN) is collaborating with other advocacy groups to ensure that women are included at this formative moment as the country prepares to split in two.

The 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement and subsequent interim constitutions and laws set the stage for women to have a formalized role in governance. But without proactive efforts to safeguard these gains, women’s rights advocates fear that the plight of Sudanese women may not be effectively addressed in ongoing negotiations. Notably, women are not well represented on the negotiating teams. For instance, of the 54 members on the South Sudan Referendum Task Force, only five are women.

“Women’s organizations and networks are not being consulted by the NCP, SPLM, and other parties to the CPA even on matters that will have direct impact on women and the girl child,” reports SSWEN director Lilian Riziq.

The members of SSWEN are mobilizing around three main objectives:

-- To secure effective representation of women in the negotiation teams and in the various working groups addressing post-referendum issues.

-- To advocate for the establishment of a legal and administrative mechanism to address possible adverse impact of the referendum outcome on family institution/marriages between Southerners and Northerners.

-- To support the creation of women emergency response centers and lobby for the establishment of women desks in police stations.

Voice your support for SSWEN’s efforts and in turn let the Southern Sudanese government know that the international community expects the world’s newest country to meaningfully involve women in governance and address the specific needs of women, the “marginalized of the marginalized” in Sudan.