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FROM THE FIELD

TV news footage : Democratic Republic of the Congo: conflict becomes more brutal with rise in sexual violence
23 Jul 2009 14:47:47 GMT
 Source: International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - Switzerland
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Since fighting intensified in eastern Congo in August 2008 between government troops and armed opposition groups, the number of cases of rape and other sexual abuse against civilians is has been increasing.

TV news footage transmitted worldwide 24th July 2009 on Associated Press Global Newswire at 09:15 – 09:30 GMT Repeated 14:15 – 14:30 GMT and on Eurovision News Service (to be confirmed)


For information on footage:
Jan powell, ICRC, Geneva,
tel: +41 22 730 25 11 or +41 79 251 93 14


According to a recent independent survey * commissioned by the ICRC, 28% of the people interviewed in the DRC know someone who has fallen victim to sexual violence.

, and 76% of the population hashave been affected in some way by the armed conflict, .

58% oOf those with personal experience of the conflict, 58% have been displaced from their homes at some point, and 47% have lost contact with a close relative.

In North and South Kivu there continue to be reports of numerous crimes against civilians, including rape, murder, and the looting and destruction of homes, continue to be reported.

Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes.

It is estimated that in North Kivu alone, since the beginning of the year, over 300,000 people have been displaced due toby armed violence since the beginning of the year.

Most rape victims are women, but the number of men and boys affected victims is on the increase.

According to counsellors in the area, men are often brutally raped when the perpetrators can not find any women to sexually abuse.

These men are frequently so traumatised traumatized that they no longer have the strength to work.

As Paul tells the social worker Katungo Kilauri, he used to sell alcohol to pay for school items and medical care for his children, but now the family is struggling to survive on the money his wife earns.

The proliferation of small arms and light weapons often results in an increasedgreater risk of sexual violence.

But women and men are also being raped even in areas where there is no longer is any fighting.

The sheer presence of men with guns represents a danger for tens of thousands of persons people who live in fear of physical and sexual violence and other forms of physical violence.

Sexual violence is rooted in a variety of factors, amongst themincluding: a weak chain of command leaving fighters without clear instructions to follow; a widespread culture of impunity, meaning that most perpetrators of rape are never held to account, and this despite the fact that both Congolese law and international humanitarian law clearly prohibit all forms of sexual violence; as the fact that fighters don't getdo not receive regular salaries or food supplies – they often steal from the population, and rape the villagers, as a form of payment; a tendency to terrorize civilians and exert control over them, or to punish them for perceived collaboration with the "enemy".

Though international humanitarian law and the Congolese Constitution clearly prohibit all forms of sexual violence, this culture of impunity prevents justice to be done.

Since 2005 the ICRC has been supporting "maisons d'écoute", (which counselling centres – literally, translates as "houses for listening houses"), where for victims of sexual violence receive counselling.

Today it supports provides support for 37 listening housessuch centres, that which are run by local associations in North and South Kivu.

Psycho-sSocial workers listen to the victims, counsel them, direct them to health centres and, if needed, mediate between them and their families.

The health centres provide victims with a kit that containsing, among others other things, medication against sexually transmitted infections.

In order not to expose thehelp women avoid to the risk of rape when gatheringthat they are exposed to when they gather firewood in remote areas, the counselling centres listening houses also show them how to make bricks from wood pulp that can be used as fuel for low low-energy cooking stoves.

On top of theirIn addition to the physical and psychological pain they suffer, rape victims are often rejected by their families and neighbours, and become vulnerable to further abuse.

The stigma is compounded by the climate of insecurity and the collapse of public services, that curtailswhich limit victims' ability to obtain access to much-needed medical and psychological care.

In addition to the exposure to sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS, victims suffer from psychological trauma and injury which may take much more time to heal than purely physical ones.

Psycho-sSocial workers also run community community-awareness campaigns to combat rejection and stigma and contribute to creatingpromote an environment where the needs of victims of sexual violence are acknowledged.

Says counsellor Micheline Mupenzi: "There is much suffering around, and psychological wounds are not given sufficient enough attention.

You can treat victims of sexual violence from a strictly medical point of view, but they can die if their "'inner wounds" ' are not taken into account.

Some women would go back home and stop eating, – doing they do nothing but crying, and eventually die from mental and physical exhaustion." * Consult this survey on on our website http://www.icrc.org/Web/eng/siteeng0.nsf/htmlall/views-from-field-report-240609/$File/Our-World-Views-from-DRC-I-ICRC.pdf Shot list Date, location: south and north Kivus, DRC, May 2009 Production: Claire Doole, Didier Revol, ICRC Camera: Pedram Yazdi Sound: VO, Swahili, French Length: 09' 57" Format: HDVCam 16:9

Ref: VF CR-F-01025-A (to be modified) Copyright: ICRC - Access all 00 00 Woman walks on path winding through banana plantation 00 08 Water point with women and children fetching water (2 shots) 00 18 Woman in bean field with close close-up 00 32 Woman walks on road with truck coming her way 00 40 Listening houseCounselling centre (maison d'écoute) in Kiwanja.

Esther, victim of rape (green dress), enters premises 00 55 Esther and Mariette Paluku Nzaira (social worker) starting counselling session (cutaways) Esther: They took me by the arm.

When I tried to struggle, they broke my arm.

Now I can’t use it any more.

Then they raped me.

01 10 Mariette: Yes.

Thank you for coming.

01 11 Esther: I hope you can help me to calm down.

I don’t understand myself.

My heart beats hard and fast and I ask myself where I am.

I want to be at peace in my heart.

I have become confused and disoriented.

01 27 Mariette: If I understood you properly, when you felt better, you fled to Rutshuru 01 37 ITW Esther They came to the house, opened the door while beating me up, and beating also all the children too.

They took everything out; : that is when they caught me.

I tried to scream and struggle but it did not help.

They took my arms and pulled me like this, .

my My arm got injured.

They raped me.

I had a big son who was 20 and wanted to get married soon, .

they They killed him.

02 12 ITW Esther When I remember, I cry out and ask myself, Oh oh my brothers, what kind of problem is it in this world that is making us suffer so much, us women.

Going to the fields is terrifying.

We are at a loss for what to do.

Mama Mariette is the only one calming me.

So I come here to see her.

She tells me to be strong.

02 37 Close Close-up on board Ligue pour la solidarité congolaise 02 40 Wide shot on board Ligue pour la solidarité congolaise 02 43 Mariette and Esther walk hand hand-in in-hand in courtyard 02 53 ITW Mariette Many women would beare attacked, then they would retreatwithdraw into themselves, because they are traumatized.

When we got thisreceived our training, I saw that this work was very important to women – to help them overcome this problem, and be able to retrieve take back their former lives and also continue living and taking care of their families.

03 20 ITW Mariette The advantage to come to a listening housein coming here, for these women who feel dishonoured, is to getthat they receive counselling.

Because they are worried that their families or neighbours will find out and reject them.

03 40 In courtyard Mariette shows victims how to make a low low-energy cooking stove and fire bricks from wood pulp 03 45 Close Close-up on cooking stove 03 57 Wide shot of women in courtyard 04 02 Woman crushes wood pulp with stick for the confection ofto make fire bricks.

04 06 Listening houseCounselling centre in Kako-Kalengera 04 15 Social worker Katungo Kilauri listens to a man male rape victim of rape 04 27 ITW Paul They said okOK, that I should lower my trousers because they wanted to make me their wife.

I said I had not seen anything like that, neither had Ior even heard of it.

I have children.

Finally they grabbed me and forced me to the ground.

I asked them why they wanted to rape me like that, .

I told them it was better if they shot me so that I would die and rest without having committed that sin.

04 58 ITW Paul They tore my trouser and underwear and started to rape me.

One gets out, the next enters, twice for each person, five people, ten times in total.

By the time the fifth was done, they thought I was dead.

They went away.

When they left, I struggled and tried to stand up, I managed to walk on the road, resting from time to time.

But I was bleeding heavily, my insides were out.

05 30 Paul walks out of the listening housecounselling centre.

(2 shots) 05 52 Pano of Katungo with her baby resting outside the counselling centre listening house (2 shots) 06 04 ITW Katungo When men are raped, they are immediately chocked shocked because they don't understand how real men could do this to them.

When we speak with one of themtalk to the victims, a husband wouldthey usually say his their private parts are "deteriorating".

That really bothers himthem.

06 34 ITW Katungo

When a man feels that way, he understands what happens to women.

When a man is raped, it means abusers the rapists didn’t find a woman.

When there is no woman, an encounter with these people can turn very ugly for any man.

06 47 Katungo (from back) walks in the village (2 shots) 07 00 Various shots of street life (3) 07 12 View of IDP camp in Buhimba 07 17 ITW Micheline Mupenzi, psychosocial worker from the Red Cross of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (French) Je vais expliquer aux gens ce qu'est le viol, je vais donner les conséquences du viol et je vais aussi montrer l'importance de la prise en charge psychosociale, ainsi que l'importance de la prise en charge médicale avant 72 heuresI'm going to explain to people what rape is.

I'm going to explain what the consequences are and how important it is that the victims receive psychological and medical care within 72 hours.(to be translated in Eng) 07 42 Men sat beforesitting in front of a tent 07 45 Micheline with megaphone walks towards meeting point 07 56 Various shots of Micheline in front of the audience explaining, amongst other things, how to recognize a victim of sexual violence Micheline 08 52 Close Close-up of young girl 08 56 Kids play in camp 09 09 ITW Nadine Puechguirbal, adviser women and war at the ICRC When committed in connexion connection with armed conflict, sexual violence is a war crime prohibited by international humanitarian law.

and as such, I think it is very important, therefore, that sexual violence must not be considered as a mere by-product of war.

On the contrary, it can and it must be prevented, and the fight against the impunity of the perpetrators must be given a priority.

09 36 ITW Nadine Puechguirbal It is extremely important that all victims of sexual violence –, men, women, girls and boys –, have access to counselling and proper medical assistancecare.

09 48 Cutaways of Nadine at work 09 57 END For confidentiality purposes, names of victims are fictional.

For further information, please contact: Anna Schaaf, ICRC press officer tel: +41 79 217 32 17
For information on footage and FTP access, contact Didier Revol, ICRC Geneva, tel: +41 22 730 36 81 / e-mail: drevol@icrc.org
Visit our website: http://www.icrc.org/eng/tvnews After 05.08.2009, contact archives.gva@icrc.org

See also ICRC media contacts

This article on www.icrc.org


[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

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[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

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