Congo / Sexual Violence against Women

Haunted by Congo Rape Dilemma
By Anne Mawathe
BBC News, May 15, 2010
Photo: Agence France-Presse
"[...] Margot Wallstrom, the UN's special representative on sexual violence in conflict recently said the Democratic Republic of Congo was the 'rape capital of the world.' A host of different armed groups roam parts of eastern DR Congo and all are accused of horrific violence against women. ... Jocelyn Kelly, a researcher with the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative's Gender-Based Violence programme, says the men that have survived these attacks on their families are extremely traumatised themselves: 'They say: "I can no longer look at my wife." And every time they see this woman, they see someone they were not able to protect. They feel like failures and the only way they can deal with it is to reject their wife and start over.' This is part of the damage that has been caused by people like Emmanuel, a former child soldier who is now 22 years old. ... He fought with the CNDP rebel group. Emmanuel says that they raped to show their anger with the authorities for neglecting them. 'Soldiers or rebels usually rape because we stay in isolated places and we don't get our pay -- even if it can come, it doesn't come on time. After living for a long time in the forest, you don't see women and so if one woman shows up then all of us, we profit.' [...]"