The use of rape to terrorize women and girls, has continued throughout the Congo’s long and bloody war-torn history. Fear has become a daily emotion for women and girls, as the numbers of rape victims have continuously risen since the end of the Second Congo War, becoming a common feature of Congolese daily life. Why does rape in the Congo continue? The increase in sexual violence is directly linked to the increase in rebel activity, and is only compounded by both national and international impunity of the crime. While in 2006 the government did pass stronger laws to punish offenders of sex crimes, the effect of these laws has been minimal, as women and girls continue to be raped and assaulted in mass and impunity continues to reign for the perpetrators.
The use of rape as a weapon is one of the most violent and humiliating offenses inflicted on the enemy, the brutalization of rape permanently scars the victim’s mind, soul and often body. The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that violence against females is the cause of more death or disability, for girls and women aged 15 to 44, than that of cancer, malaria, traffic injuries and general warfare combined. Tens of thousands of rapes were recorded by the UN in the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu, however the majority of victims do not seek medical treatment, thus the real number of victims looks to be in the hundreds of thousands. While the scale at which the use of rape has been utilized in the Congo is alarming, what is even more disturbing is the brutal way that the rapes are carried out, as women are often raped even more violently with objects such as guns and sticks. Women and girls are often brutally murdered following their rapes, children are ripped from their arms and even unborn infants are cut from the womb. The age of victims is in its own right disparaging, as many are only children, some only toddlers, many of which endure countless rapes as they are held in sexual slavery by their captors.
Rape has scourged the country, as one of the most horrific crimes against humanity has taken victim to women and girls across the country. However as I sit here in contemplation of the violence it continues to take its daily feed of victims as the hunger of war rages on and I ask myself, have we forgotten the Congo? And then I question myself again and think maybe we haven’t actually forgotten, but simply given up hope that the war will ever come to an end. Regardless the Congo needs more of our attention, for as long as we turn a blind eye we are unwittingly letting those who perpetrate such heinous crimes to continue with wreck-less abandon.
New research is now looking at the impact of the problem on the overall population in the Eastern regions of the Congo. According to the paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) on 4 August, researchers went door-to-door to interview nearly 1,000 villagers in North and South Kivu and Ituri last March (IRIN). The paper is one of the first to look at gender specifics both on the side of the perpetrator and the survivor.
“We can no longer think that sexual violence is just violence against women perpetrated by men, it is about everybody,” said Lawry. She added that action to combat sexual violence “must now include men and boys”, starting with UN policy documents which have until now focused on female survivors. When we are looking at how we are going to address communities, we need to talk to female perpetrators as well as male perpetrators, and we have to include male survivors in our mental health clinics in order to address their issues, which may be very different from female survivors,” she said.
While true males are not the only violators of such a crime, many are cautioning the study in regards to the accusations on the levels of female perpetrators: Regardless of gender of the perpetrator or victim the use of rape as a weapon is one of the most violent and humiliating offenses inflicted on the enemy. The brutalization of rape permanently scars the victim’s mind, soul and often body. The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that violence against females is the cause of more death or disability, for girls and women aged 15 to 44, than that of cancer, malaria, traffic injuries and general warfare combined. Tens of thousands of rapes were recorded by the UN in the eastern provinces of North and South Kivu, however the majority of victims do not seek medical treatment, thus the real number of victims looks to be in the hundreds of thousands. While the scale at which the use of rape has been utilized in the Congo is alarming, what is even more disturbing is the brutal way that the rapes are carried out, as women are often raped even more violently with objects such as guns and sticks. Women and girls are often brutally murdered following their rapes, children are ripped from their arms and even unborn infants are cut from the womb. The age of victims is in its own right disparaging, as many are only children, some only toddlers, many of which endure countless rapes as they are held in sexual slavery by their captors.
“Statistics on female rape perpetrators are very low,” according to Denise Siwatula, a program officer at the Women’s Synergy for the Victims of Sexual Violence, a Congolese NGO based in the Kivus. Siwatula, said she confirmed that many men were victims of sexual violence and that their assistance needs were different to those of women, especially for psychological help, which she said was generally under-funded. “Our psycho-social service tries to help the victims rebuild themselves, but it is not very efficient because we need a lot more resources to rehabilitate the victims psychologically, socially and mentally,” she said.
Regardless of the gender of the perpetrator or victim, the violence in the Congo continues in the lives of those who are continually plagued with fear as rape scourers the nation. As long as impunity continues rapes will remain the weapon of choice for all too many combatants, for its effectiveness far outweighs the price of a bullet.
For more information please see my previous post on the use of rape as a weapon of war here.
