Title: Congolese women confront legacy of rape: War and sexual violence leave survivors in desperate need.

POPLINE Document Number: 314822

Author(s):

Kimani M

Source citation:

Africa Renewal, 2007 Jan;20(4):4-6, 22.

Abstract:

"If there had been peace, this would not have happened to us," says Kasoke Kabunga. Like thousands of other women, Kasoke and her daughter were raped by armed militiamen in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Her daughter died. Kasoke survived, but contracted HIV/AIDS. Their tragedy is the female face of 10 years of war in the DRC, which has claimed more than 3 million lives and displaced another 3.5 million people. Today, a handful of courageous Congolese women are seeking to help Kasoke and other rape survivors find solutions to the many problems facing them. Rachel Kembe, a medical doctor, is one of those providing help. In 1997, when hundreds of women from the Masisi and Ruchuru areas were arriving in the town of Goma with serious injuries, she and five other professional women came together to assist them through the Association nationale des mamans pour l'aide aux déshérités (ANAMAD, National Mothers' Association to Aid the Dispossessed). "We contributed US$20-50 every month," Ms. Kembe explains. "That is how we initially began our work. Today we have 2,500 rape survivors from Goma and the surrounding villages that we have assisted in one way or another." But the number keeps growing. (excerpt)

Keywords:

Democratic Republic of the Congo
Critique
Evaluation
Women in Development
Persons Living With HIV/AIDS
Nongovernmental Organizations
Rape
War
HIV Infections
Antiretroviral Therapy
Psychological Factors
Developing Countries
Africa, Central
Africa, Sub Saharan
Africa
Economic Development
Economic Factors
Viral Diseases
Diseases
Organizations
Political Factors
Sociocultural Factors
Crime
Social Problems
HIV
Behavior