Rape in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

War has continually plagued the DRC for almost 15 years and has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Congolese people; the most devastating aspect of this war is the brutal and violent rapes that occur every day. In understanding rape as a weapon of war, especially in the Congo, one must understand the theories behind wartime rape. Jonathan Gottschal explains rape in the time of conflict in the Journal of Sex Research. He explains that the effects wartime rape has on enemy populations is profound and mass rape is nothing but a toxin that destroys homes and villages. It terrorizes, humiliates, demoralizes, and emasculates their enemies because they were not able to protect their women. Not only that, it weakens the village by strategically breaking it apart. In African culture, when a women is raped she is ostracized by her husband and community. The women may also become impregnated with the enemy’s child, further pushing her away from her community. Gottschal writes that rape designed to annihilate a people and culture is called as “genocide rape” and its implications in places such as the Congo are profound.

Wairagala Wakabi paints a gruesome picture of the reality of rape in the DRC throughout her article in The Lancet. She says the purposeful mutilation of women’s genitalia, sexual slavery, gang rapes, and killing of rape victims are not out of the ordinary in the Congo. Karin Watcher, a member of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) explains, “As the security situation unravels yet again, we are seeing trends rising and multiple forms of sexual violence-from abduction, gang rape, shooting women through the vagina, and forcing family members to participate- are a spreading practice among military and militia groups”. Things such as HIV/AIDS, pregnancy, STI’s are all common in many areas where sexual violence occurs, however the DRC is unique in that the brutality of the rapes is beyond anyone’s imagination. Women and girls suffer the common results of rape, along with fistulae, broken bones, severed limbs, and burns in the vagina. Not only are the women heavily affected by the cruelty of the rapes, health reporters in the DRC say that “male relatives are often forced at gun point to rape their own daughters, mothers, or sisters; and that frequently, women are shot or stabbed in their genital organs after they are raped”.

There are several groups committing these crimes, including government soldiers, local Mai Mai militia who are allied with the government, Rwandan rebel groups, guerillas of the National Congress for the Defense of the People, and even some UN peace keepers. The number of rapes is hard to calculate, but it is estimated that over tens of thousands of girls and women have been raped in the DRC. Since women have to travel long distances to receive health care and risk being attacked again, most women go untreated and undocumented. The DRC has one of the highest rates of STI’s of any other military in the world, yet only 30% of rape survivors have undergone treatment for HIV. Patrick Hourtane, sexual violence coordinator for Doctors Without Borders, said “There is a lot of violence going on and victims do not report it because it is considered social death…in Kivu the victims are afraid of the perpetrators because they are still around… We only see the tip of the iceberg”.

How do we approach these atrocities is the next and most important part in ending the violence against women in the Congo. The women need more than protection and health care, but also psychological treatment as well. They need to gain the abilities to regain their strength in themselves and begin to live a normal life again. Dr. Lee Ann DeRues is the co-founder of the Panzi Foundation USA, whose mission is to raise awareness about the conflict in the Congo and to raise funds for the Panzi hospital in Eastern Congo. The Panzi hospital is only one of two hospitals in the Eastern Congo that helps rape survivors. Dr. DeRues is taking the necessary steps to care for these women and to help rebuild their lives.

In hopes to help the women of the Congo, Duquesne University's Amnesty International is partnering with the Pittsburgh Human Rights Network for the 2011 Human Rights Arts Festival. Dr. DeRues will be presenting and speaking at the event, and the funds raised from the $5 entry fee and raffle will all go to the Panzi Foundation. There will be two bands, The Rooftop Trio and Spontaneo, raffles, food, henna tattoos, art raffle, over 20 non-profits from all over Pittsburgh tabling, and of course lots of information on the Congo and violence against women.

Please join us for this wonderful event and help PHRN and Duquesne's Amnesty in the fight to end violence against women.