Joy, the daughter of one of our Transformation Group members, now has a brighter future.
As She Is Safe works to empower women in hard places throughout the world, we see them bring light and life the communities around them. In South Sudan we are working to empower women through Transformation Groups. These self-help groups are tailored for sustainability and help women learn financial management in a supportive group of friends, led by one of our trained co-workers. In South Sudan we have been able to help women start restaurants and other small businesses, allowing them to better care for their families and demonstrating their value to their communities.
Due to recent conflicts in South Sudan between the government and rebel groups, stability has disintegrated. As a result, violence against girls and women has skyrocketed. Amnesty International recently released a report detailing the struggles women and girls are forced to endure in South Sudan. Because of the conflict, South Sudan has developed a militarized society. This leaves few protections for mothers and daughters as they try to escape the violence.
The city of Juba has suffered especially heavy fighting, and the high number of sexual assaults reported reflects this chaos. Women have reported being targeted by both rebel groups and by government troops. Women have been taken from their homes at night and brought to soldier camps. Even women and girls in refugee camps have not been spared from sexual abuse and attacks.
We are thankful that the women who have been equipped through She Is Safe remain unharmed. In fact, they have used their resources to continue their savings and lending. They give hope to displaced women and are continuing to feed orphans.
Please pray that stability will return to the region as we continue to work to protect and empower women and girls.
To read the full report from Amnesty, visit: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/AFR65/003/2014/en