Raped and rejected: women face double tragedy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Today marks the start of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign. Under the theme ‘Leave no one behind: End violence against women and girls,’ the campaign calls on people to commit to a world free from violence for all women and girls around the world. In this story, we shine the spotlight on the conflict zones in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where rape and sexual violence are recurrent atrocities, and a culture of impunity prevails.
In the conflict zones in DRC, rape and sexual violence are recurrent atrocities. For the past year in Kasai region, where conflict has torn through many localities, not only have hundreds of women been raped, but many rape survivors are then rejected by their husbands and families due to a belief that they carry stigma and bring misfortune.
The rejection is doubly tragic for women who sacrificed themselves to undergo horrific assault to save the lives of their husbands and children from armed raiders, only to be later abandoned. Some men have simply deserted their wives. Left without a choice after relations worsen post-rape, other women have been forced to abandon their matrimonial homes.
“One night when we were asleep, five armed men stormed our house. They trussed up my husband and demanded that we give them money. Brandishing their guns, they threatened to kill him or rape me if we didn’t give them money,” said 41-year-old Marie* who now lives with her sister. “To save my husband’s life I told them to take me instead. All the five of them raped me before my husband and children. They then looted everything. Since then my husband has abandoned me. There is this culture that when a woman has been defiled, the husband has the right to leave her.”
“I sometimes feel like committing suicide. I feel so ashamed because everybody in the neighbourhood knows that I was raped,” she said, her welling eyes looking into the distance. “People mock me in the neighbourhood.”
Credit: UNOCHA/Otto Bakano
Between 6 and 29 per cent of survivors of sexual violence in eastern DRC are rejected by their families and communities, according to a 2016 Overseas Development Institute study.
Since the eruption of the conflict in Kasai, more than 600 sexual violence cases have been registered, according to UNICEF, though the real figure is much higher. Over half of the 163 incidents of sexual violence in and around Kananga, the capital of Kasai, are attributed to unidentified armed men.
Sexual violence and abuse is rooted in pre-existing societal gender inequalities, which are worsened by violence, says Dr. Denis Mukwege, a renowned DRC physician and rights advocate.
DRC consistently receives low scores on international gender equality ratings. In 2016, the country received 2.5 out of 6 in the World Bank’s gender equality rating, a scale that assesses progress in enforcing laws and policies to promote equal access for men and women to education, health, economic opportunity and protection. But a decree prohibiting “retrogressive and demeaning customs” against women was recently issued in Kasai Central Province and has been hailed by rights groups as major progress in protecting women’s rights.
Raped and rejected
“We were in church one night — five women and some men — when suddenly a group of armed men burst in. They seized our handbags and other valuables. Then they started arguing, some of them saying ‘these are women we should have them.’ Then they raped us all,” recounted Alice*, who was later abandoned by her husband.
“When I got home, I told my husband what had happened. As time went by he grew so distant and cold. Things were not the same anymore. So I left. We are no longer in contact. My family is the one supporting me here,” said Alice who has returned to her parents’ home with her four children. “Since I came back people are asking me why I am staying here for such a long time, what I’m doing and why I am not with my husband. According to the customs, I can’t stay with my husband because of what happened to me.”
Patience*, 30 years old, was also at the same church as Alice.
“Life has been difficult and stressful since the incident. I explained to my husband what happened and he didn’t seem to believe me. Then he suddenly left. He abandoned me just like that. His number is not going through and I haven’t heard of him since.”
“I am ashamed to go back to work,” said Patience, a former Government worker. Since her husband’s departure she, too, has returned to live with her own family. “I really don’t know what to do. I hope everything will be well. I am receiving counselling and I am slowly improving. But this will remain a horrific memory for the rest of my life.”
- Names have been changed.
Want to get involved? Click here to donate to the DRC Humanitarian Fund, which supports GBV programmes and other humanitarian response activities.
