United Nations Radio

Atul Khare

United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Atul Khare visited villages on Wednesday in North Kivu Province of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where more than 200 civilians were raped by rebel forces last month. Jocelyne Sambira has more.

RAPE VICTIM: They raped us in front of our children! During the attack, they stripped us naked, inserted their hands in my vagina looking for gold. After they didn't find any gold they wrestled us down and raped us. They were about five, six, even ten men. Then they left us lying down in pain.

NARRATOR: This woman was at the scene of the horrific attack on her village in Luvungi on July 30 when the Congolese Mai-Mai militia and Rwandan Hutu rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, FDLR, went on a three day rape spree. Many women like her were gang-raped in front of their families. Now, more than a month later, she wants to tell her story. In a meeting with Athul Khare, the UN Envoy for Peacekeeping Operations, words flow from her mouth but there is not a tear in her eye. She is agitated, and she waves her hands for emphasis. After her, another woman speaks out and pleads with the UN officials: You have to help us, she says.

Athul Khare, sent by the UN Chief to investigate the attack, conveys Ban's message of outrage and sympathy. He tries to appease the women, and reassures them that the UN will do its best to restore security in the area.

KHARE: We need to bring such criminals to justice and we need to make sure that the vast majority of humanity which is more concerned about peace, stability and development can actually find a future for themselves and their children which is the future of peace and prosperity.

NARR: The number of women to have suffered rape in that fatal July 30 attack has now been calculated at 240. The UN has received a lot of criticism for not being able to respond quickly to the incident. Margot Wallstrom, the UN Special Envoy on Sexual Violence in Conflict acknowledges that improving the UN's response to such incidents is crucial.

WALLSTROM: In remote areas uniformed peacekeepers may be the first responders and the first to interact with survivors or communities at risk, and they need to be prepared for this as much as they are for conventional military interventions. Early warning systems and initiatives need to be institutionalized.

NARR: The Congolese Mai Mai and FDLR Hutu rebels have terrorized the Eastern part of Congo for over a decade. They occupy and control many areas in the Kivus mainly around the mines. The UN estimates that over 200,000 women have been raped in the DRC during the last 14 years of conflict. Margot Wallstrom says use of rape in the DRC is not random.

WALLSTROM: Sexual violence should never again be dismissed as random, cultural or inevitable. In this case, like so many others, systematic rape was planned, and therefore preventable.

 Margot Wallstrom, UN envoy on Sexual Violence in Conflict.

Producer: Joscelyne Sambira
Duration: 3'05"