Sudanese women have been organizing and struggling for both their own autonomy and power for decades. They are also are behind the social media campaign #justicefornoura for a teenager’s plight, Noura Hussein, who was sentenced to death in May after stabbing her husband when he attempted to rape her. At 16 years old, Noura Hussein was told that she was to be married, which she refused and led her to run away from her family and eventually taking shelter with a relative. After staying away from her home for 3 years she was tricked into returning, and forced to marry Abdulrahman Mohamed Hammad. A man who would later rape her with the help of his three relatives, and on the second attempt Noura grabbed a knife to defend herself and stabbed him resulting in his death. After Noura’s legal team appealed, her death sentence was overturned in late June, and her sentence reduced to 5 years jail term and a payment of 337,000 Sudanese pounds ($19,000) of “blood money” to her deceased husband’s family. Her legal team said that they would also fight to appeal this jail sentence and the payment. Noura’s case has brought attention to the legal and social reformation needed in issues of child marriage, forced marriage, and marital rape. In 2015, Sudan pledged to eliminate child marriage in the country, and human rights activists believe this case may finally be the push the country needs to enact these changes. The case has also opened up discussions among the Sudanese community on social media regarding issues such as child marriage, consent, religion and violence against women, particularly as there are those who don’t consider marital rape to be criminal. In Sudan, the legal age of marriage is only 10 and marital rape is legal. Child marriage has been woven into the fabric of the country’s culture, driven by tradition and poverty. More than a third of girls are married before their 18th birthday, according to a 2017 UNICEF report. But forced child marriage is not merely a matter of culture or the transactional arrangement between families, child marriage is prevalent as a result of an interplay of factors, including entrenched gender inequality, harmful gender norms, continued conflict and limits on the agency and decision-making of adolescent girls, all of which conspire to put them at risk. While we can safely say that child marriage is illegal in Rwanda, the rise in teenage pregnancies is as a result of many similar factors. Many of these girls must discontinue their education, face serious health risks from early and multiple pregnancies, and suffer sexual and domestic violence. Agenda 2063, the African Union’s 50-year action plan for development, recognizes that child marriage is a major impediment to regional development and prosperity. Putting an end to child forced marriage in Sudan and other countries requires addressing all the drivers of this practice, such as poverty, limited access to resources, sustainable livelihoods and education, and lack of sexual and reproductive healthcare. The story of Noura is one story among many of other girls facing similar issues. We shouldn’t also forget to address the lack of awareness on the rights of girls and the legal frameworks in place to uphold them.
