July / August 2006

No Justice, No Democracy

Women in the Democratic Republic of Congo hope historic elections will end massive rights abuses and impunity

Aningina Tshefu Bibiane would like to believe that the elections on July 30 in her native Democratic Republic of Congo will bring a shift toward true democracy in the war-torn nation. It's a dream the founder and director of the New York-based Congolese Women's Lobby knows is distant at best, but democracy holds the only hope for justice for the DRC's countless victims of war-related sexual violence, she says.

In more than 10 years of armed conflict in the eastern DRC, tens of thousands of women and girls have suffered gang-rapes and other forms of brutal sexual violence carried out by combatants from the many armed factions operating in the area. Despite widespread hope that the transitional government installed in 2003 might finally bring an end to what Ms. Tshefu says is a "campaign of terror directed at women," sexual violence continues unabated and those responsible enjoy almost total impunity.

"Women are treated like animals in the Congo and many of those responsible for the crimes against them are currently part of the transitional government," she said. "As a result, women are involved in this election on a massive scale because they hope it will help remove those responsible for the violent crimes against them. It’s been difficult to bring them to justice up until now, but women are really hoping that the elections will lead to justice."

However, with those believed responsible for encouraging the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war running for election, Ms. Tshefu said it is unlikely that the issue of justice for these crimes will factor into many campaign platforms.

"Who will talk about it when many of those campaigning are responsible for such crimes," she asked.

Continued...

(For more information on Rights & Democracy's involvement in the DRC elections, please click here).

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