Democratic Republic of the Congo
Present
The Democratic Republic of Congo has faced decades of armed conflict, largely due to its high poverty rate, combined with corrupt governance. This instability has fueled an estimated two million civilian deaths and over one million women who have been raped. More specifically, Congo’s mineral-rich eastern regions, like North Kivu, have been the battleground for hundreds of armed groups fighting for control of territory, leading to the death, displacement, and sexual violence of many Congolese. Rebel groups, prominently the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO), M23, and the Mai-Mai have contributed to these conflicts that have spanned for more than 25 years. In October 2022, M23 rebels captured new territory in the DRC’s North Kivu province, forcing thousands to flee. This wasn’t a first. In fact, M23 was formed in 2012 by Congolese army deserters, the same year in which they were responsible for numerous killings and rapes. Rwandan officials denied supporting M23, inciting anti-Rwanda protests and raising tensions.
Discrimination Against Women
Frequent war has made rape and sexual slavery common in DRC, demonstrating how conflicts can often be essentially wars against women. Sexual abuse has been widespread in conflict areas, with around 1152 women raped every day, but also in the home, with 52% of women being survivors of domestic violence, and 27% of women being victims of harmful traditional practices. Yet, due to the stigma of rape, many married victims find themselves abandoned by their husbands. Unfortunately, abuse is not the only way in which women are discriminated against: women currently occupy only 7.2% of positions at a national level in the parliament and government. Congolese women and girls also have limited access to education and higher rates of illiteracy compared to men.
