http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6922132.stm (article)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/07/africa_elusive_peace_in_eastern_congo/html/1.stm
(related pictures)
Although an election last year was supposed to bring peace to the Democratic Republic of Congo, fighting continues and a popular form of fighting is rape. In terms of weapons of choice, rape is ideal because anyone can do it (police, soldier, or rebel) with little legal consequence but the message given to the community of the person raped is powerful. In terms of humanity, using rape as a weapon of war is atrocious! It's like fighting has degraded to medieval terms.
Rape victims, if they survive, are often scarred for life both emotionally and physically. I can't imagine that these presumed women are the fighters; they are just caught in the middle of a conflict that has gone too far. Peace can not be soon for a civil war in which the people are raping their own people.
What can be done? The genocides of Darfur have gone largely unnoticed from the world eye and the rapes/deaths in DR Congo could easily do the same. These people need to know that to fight through rape is not ok. Punishments need to be used against those that do use rape. As childish as it sounds, I wish I could wrap a blanket of protection around every woman in DR Congo.
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2 comments:
Unfortunately rape is a problem all over Africa. South Africa has one of the highest rape statistics in the world. The HIV epidemic makes these statistics that much more frightening.
Although Africa is having huge problems with rape, I think you are generalizing too much when you say "These people need to know that to fight through rape is not ok." Rape is used as a weapon everywere and you are right it is NOT okay, and it takes more than emotional women to make it stop for good. The rapists have to consider that they are raping someones mother, someones sister, someones daughter. How would they feel if that happend to one of his/her loved ones?
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