Original Date: August 11, 2020
Al-Hakkamat Baggara women hold an instrumental position in rural Sudan, wielding agency, social and political power. This book uncovers their significant but widely overlooked, role during the war in Darfur from the 1970s, and into today’s continuing conflict. The author examines the influence they exercised through composing and reciting poems and songs and through informal speech and other symbolic acts and analyses their impact in the social and political domain. She highlights how Sudan’s state government co-opted al-Hakkamat Baggara women to lobby on its behalf, to rally for war and to advocate for peace. Understanding how they can contribute to resolution and resettlement processes is vital to sustainable reconciliation and post-conflict transformation of the unstable state.
About Dr. Suad Musa
Dr. Suad M.E. Musa (PhD) is a freelance researcher and consultant on women, gender, peace, and governance issues. She has worked with the Government of Sudan and has extensive experience working with INGOs e.g. Oxfam and civil society organizations (CSOs) in Sudan, the Horn of Africa, and Britain. She also worked as an assistant professor of Sociology at Qatar University.