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The UN has sounded the alarm on widespread and systematic sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), claiming that armed groups have committed mass rapes.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the United Nations refugee agency, said its staff heard gruesome testimonies from forcibly displaced people in the southeastern province of Tanganyika.
The agency is “gravely concerned about incidents of widespread and systematic sexual violence against Congolese women and girls,” said its spokesperson, Shabia Mantoo.
“In the past two weeks alone, humanitarian partners in Kongolo and Mbulula health zones recorded 243 incidents of rape, including 48 involving minors, in 12 different villages,” Mantoo said.
The actual number of incidents is believed to be even higher, as reporting gender-based violence remains taboo in most communities.
“The attacks would be carried out by rival armed groups competing to maintain control of mining areas – particularly gold mines – and in retaliation against government-led military operations,” Mantoo said.
“Civilians find themselves trapped in the midst of intense clashes between different groups. Our staff have heard horrific testimonies of extreme violence. Forcibly displaced people accused armed groups of mass rape as women tried to flee their homes. “
She said women and girls had been abducted and raped, and families demanded ransoms in exchange for their freedom.
According to UN estimates, nearly 310,000 people have been uprooted by insecurity and violence and remain displaced in Tanganyika province.
Mantoo said more than 23,000 people have been displaced since May in Kongolo alone, in the north of the province, according to local authorities, most of whom have fled insecurity on several occasions.
UNHCR has called on the DRC authorities to strengthen security in the so-called “triangle of death” throughout the region in order to protect civilians, allow humanitarian access and launch investigations into it. bring the perpetrators to justice.
The agency said it received 36% of the $ 205m (£ 148m) needed for its operations in the DRC.
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