Women and girls in the Congo.

[ArabellaSaurus]

https://www.jurist.org/news/2025/10/un-warns-of-deepening-crises-for-women-and-girls-in-democratic-republic-of-congo/

A situation that has barely been remarked on in the UK media.

The UN have issued a warning.

Surge in sexual violence.

https://www.ungeneva.org/en/news-media/news/2025/10/112007/un-sounds-alarm-over-spike-sexual-violence-against-women-dr-congo

It's horrific. It feels like women's basic rights are going rapidly backwards everywhere.

I suppose when global politics are unstable, the most vulnerable suffer more.

For anyone who wants to donate in support https://www.unfpa.org/

I cant cope with reading the stories

It is just dreadful but what can effectively actually be done when it is so violent there? Does anyone have the power to go there and stop it?

No, I have to admit I shy away from reading too much. Thanks for the link. Im a bit hesitant about the UN after recent years, but maybe in specific situations they are still doing good.

Not sure politically, but it's possible NGOs and charities can help with healthcare, especially in the maternity field which is noted as a particular area of concern.

Truly dreadful. I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like to be a woman or girl there. Yet we never hear of it.

Sexual violence has been going on for years if not decades. Researched the DRC c.2016 and it was a hell-hole then. It seems to get worse as the years pass. Corrupt government and out of control foreign companies have created a perfect storm for women and girls especially.

Its sort of sad the reason for this but a Doctor based in the Congo has become an expert is repairing injuries to women who have survived sexual violence. And won a Nobel Prize for his work back in 2018.

Sadly his hospital is still needed.

He founded the hospital in 1999 with the intention that it would be a center of excellence for maternal health care in a country that has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world. however, the first patient that arrived at Panzi’s doors was not a pregnant woman coming to deliver her child, but instead a woman who had been raped with extreme brutality and as a weapon of war. Dr. Mukwege and his staff were forced to become experts in one of the worst specialities in medicine — the treatment of conflict-related sexual violence and the severe gynecological trauma that it results in.

https://panzifoundation.org/dr-denis-mukwege/

Not sure that this will help end the sexual violence but at least an acknowledgement of it.

Landmark ruling finally brings justice for survivors of wartime sexual violence in DRC
https://reliefweb.int/report/democratic-republic-congo/landmark-ruling-finally-brings-justice-survivors-wartime-sexual-violence-drc

Acknowledging violence committed in 2011. While it continues today.

Thanks for the share, it just all feels quite relentless and futile.

Well even if we cant do anything else than share, isn't that better than just ignoring it.

There was the harrowing report in the Guardian a while ago about the attacks on women in Eritrea. They have items inserted into their uteruses, sometimes notes wrapped up which specifically state that the perpetrators want to prevent anymore babies being born that particular group of people. Sexual violence seems to be everywhere and it's awful and under reported.

I cant find it but I seem to remember a few years ago now there was a report saying western pornography being available to watch online had (I dont know what words to use) influenced some militia groups in their attacks on women.

And a recent report from Haiti, which is basically a war zone with armed gangs in control, was about them making videos of revenge rapes.

And this with an international police force is supposedly helping to stop the violence. https://english.elpais.com/international/2025-09-26/haiti-a-wartorn-country-where-the-gangs-are-better-coordinated-than-the-public-forces.html

This is very worth reading, if you can bear to. Christina Lamb has been reporting for years on sex crimes in war.
https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/our-bodies-their-battlefield-what-war-does-to-women-christina-lamb?variant=32600408784974

Thank you, that does seem to suggest something definite has been done against the impunity around the relentless raping and also something done to set up assistance and support for the victims.

But just try to imagine the reality of 10,000 rapes and sexual assaults in two months 45% of which were of children.

I read a little bit about DRC - incredibly mineral rich, so the US and China are competing for access.

I wonder how much influence either country might have on the violence?

It seems they call for peace, and may be in danger themselves:
https://www.riotimesonline.com/china-warns-citizens-to-leave-eastern-drc-amid-escalating-violence/

The Christina Lamb book is very good and Panzi Fnd do great work (you can donate). The Times had a recent article.

This is my professional field (grimly) and I have been to DRC multiple times. It's one of the places I still have flashbacks about. Eastern DRC in particular is one of the worst places to be a woman in the world. The peacekeeping mission, MONUSCO, had some good initial successes with protection of women and girls but the scale of the issue, and the terrain, makes it very hard to control. The situation in eastern Congo has been spiraling since the 90s, and is closely linked to the Rwandan genocide. There's a very good book by Michaela Wrong (in the footsteps of Mr Kurtz) which charts the descent of DRC from the 60s-90s. There's a long history to this crisis.

Thanks for doing the work, Aicheck. It must be unbelievably hard to bear witness to. I hope you have good strong support and are able to care for yourself, too.

Christina Lamb had been bearing witness to what happens to women in war zones for so many years. An admirable journalist and woman

Thank you for what you do.