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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

[ Recorded presentation ] Recorded presentation

Darfur

Susannah Sirkin, Physicians for Human Rights, Deputy Director, 2 Arrow Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, 617 301 4204, ssirkin@phrusa.org

Findings and recommendations of Physicians for Human Rights' (PHR) report on Darfur, Sudan, Assault on Survival: A Call for Security, Justice and Restitution will be presented. The investigation was conducted during three trips to the region between May 2004 and July 2005. Investigators randomly surveyed dozens of survivors from the villages of Furawiya, Bendisi and Terbeba and documented compelling evidence of attacks on lives and livelihoods that PHR has assessed as genocidal. The results of the investigation included catastrophic elimination of traditional livelihoods and the obliteration of the means of survival and the way of life. Many households experienced a substantial drop in size due to death and separation while seeking refuge. The average household size in all three villages before the attacks was 12.1 people, while after the attacks, the average household had shrunk to just 6.7. Out of a total combined population of 558 people in all of the households of respondents, 251 were confirmed killed or missing; of these 141 were confirmed killed. The public health impacts of the attacks and the flight of the survivors, and the impact of the destruction of livestock, water supply, food stocks and homes in the context of Darfur's culture and economy will be discussed.

Learning Objectives: At the end of this session participants will