As our politicians continue to doddle and wonder about legal definitions, the war continues and people die. Besides the starvation tactics and murder, the pro-government (Arab) militias are forcing their will against the black tribes by raping women and girls according to Amnesty International. This tactic was used extensively in Rwanda ten years ago and also in Kosovo, among other wars.
"The horrific nature and scale of the violence inflicted on entire groups in Darfur appears to be a form of collective punishment of a population whose members have taken up arms against the central government," the Amnesty International report said.
"It may be interpreted as a warning to other groups and regions of what could happen to the local population if certain groups decided to rebel against Khartoum," it added.
"The suffering and abuse endured by these women goes far beyond the actual rape," Amnesty said. "Rape has a devastating and ongoing impact on the health of women and girls, and survivors now face a lifetime of stigma and marginalization from their own families and communities."
"You blacks, you have spoiled the country," one in a group of women recounted the militia men telling them. "We are here to burn you. We will kill your husbands and sons, and we will sleep with you! You will be our wives!"
