During a recent visit to Chad, the Duchess of Edinburgh was left devastated after hearing stories of the distressing scenes of human exploitation during Sudan’s civil war. The Duchess spoke to women who had fled to neighbouring Chad to escape the war, who detailed how people were having to exchange food and water for sex as a tool of violence during the conflict. She also said that some of the women who managed to flee their homes were lucky to be alive, with being raped and killed for leaving their houses a constant threat.
The Duchess of Edinburgh’s visit, carried out after a request from the UK’s Foreign Office, was the first royal visit to Chad. The purpose of the trip was to draw attention to the escalating humanitarian crisis caused by the war in Sudan, which is resulting in more and more people arriving as refugees to Chad. Over 10 million people have so far been forced to leave their homes due to the conflict in Sudan, with women and children disproportionately affected by the crisis.
Sophie, who visited Chad with Unicef representatives, also visited a refugee camp where she spoke to the mother of a small child who had travelled for ten days to reach safety and did not know the whereabouts of her husband following the conflict. The Duke of Edinburgh’s wife has visited several countries in recent years, previously visiting Ukraine, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, and Sierra Leone too raise awareness about violence against women in times of armed conflict.
Luke Skipper, Executive Director at The Duke of York’s Inspiring Digital Enterprise Award, added, “This is an incredibly important issue, and it is wonderful that the Duchess of Edinburgh is using her platform to raise awareness of the distressing exploitation occurring during Sudan’s civil war. We need to do all that we can to help those in need and a good starting point is by increasing awareness of the situation and providing support to those caught up in these tragic events.”
Despite being unable to personally remove individuals from danger, the Duchess’ platform has enabled her to raise awareness of the worsening situation in Sudan, with women and children affected most. The focus is now drawn on the international community to find a way to support those displaced and address the crisis at its roots
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