Throughout our history, Aegis Students has been very active on the issue of Darfur, running grassroots campaigns to bring the situation to ministerial attention. This has meant lobbying local and national governments to help end the crisis, through full deployment of UN peace-keeping troops and the immediate arrest of the men wanted for crimes against humanity in Darfur. Aegis Students is proud to have stood in solidarity with Darfuri asylum seekers and survivors at many events and demonstrations and played a major role in a number of Global Days for Darfur in the UK. Aegis Students societies have also held events intended to raise awareness amongst students and the wider public, with numerous talks by Darfuris and film screenings.
Through the initiative Fund4Darfur, Aegis Students has worked to support survivors who have struggled to survive after the killing has ended. Funds raised through Fund4Darfur have contributed to the work of REACT, an organisation that aims to support refugee children’s right to education by providing refugee school children with books and other educational tools from their home countries. Prospective plans also include donating money to provide slow-burning stoves for women who must leave the camps to collect firewood, and thus face rape and sexual violence at the hands of Janjaweed militia.
In addition, this meant providing support to, and protecting, Darfuri asylum seekers living within the UK. This year, Aegis Students have been involved in supporting Waging Peace’s fight against the deportation of Abeer Awooda, a Darfuri journalist and torture victim. As a result of this campaign Abeer was released from Yarls Wood detention centre.
Later activities of Aegis Students have included an Education Programme, where speakers visited local schools, delivering presentations in order to raise awareness of the causes and consequences of genocide.
