The United Nations reported that more than 500 rapes were committed by conflict combatants in the eastern Congo since late July this year, despite the effort of the Congolese police force and the UN peacekeeping force. The figure is more than double than that was previously reported in and around Luvungi, a farming village of 2000 people located 20 miles from the UN peacekeepers’ camp. The rapes were systematic and were used as a ‘weapon of war’ by a rebel group responsible for a conflict fueled by vast mineral reserves, though a minor proportion of them were committed by Congolese soliders. The UN assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Atul Khare admitted that the UN peacekeeping force was not doing enough to prevent the incidents from happening. Congo has been in local conflicts for 7 years and the UN Security Council has to reconsider the issue of withdrawing its peacekeeping force there.
It is a cruel fact that civilians always suffer the most when a regional armed conflict happens. In addition to deaths and casualties, sexual abuses are common and, like this Congo case, can be used as war weapons. But unlike deaths and casualties, sexual abuses are more difficult to detect and prevent because they do not have obvious and permanent bruises and the victims are weak and vulnerable. Perhaps that is why the UN was late in even finding out the mass rapes in the Luvungi region, not to mention the additional equally vast number of rapes in other villages. Having said so, the peacekeepers should put more effort in tackling mass rapes problems not only by increasing patrol frequency and scope, but also by better cooperating with local civilians. Wider network of communication should be built between the peacekeeping force and the civilians.
I cannot agree more with the Congo’s permanent representative to the UN Ileka Atok that the root solution is to end the protracted conflict in the eastern Congo as soon as possible.
source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/UN-reports-over-500-rapes-in-eastern-Congo/articleshow/6516934.cms
2 comments:
I have to agree with you because what they are doing to these people is cruel and inhumanly. I never thought that they can used raping victims as weapons at war. NO human should deserve toe be treated like that. I'm surprised they let this situation go on for so long, or just found out about it.
Yes it is very cruel what is going on in the Congo.I agree that the UN needs to be doing more to protect these innocent women.I am skeptical about the fact that the UN didnt know anything about the rapes because the rapes and the fighting going on in the congo is not anything new in the world news. I remember watching a documentary about the rapes happening in the Congo 2 years ago when I was a freshmen. So for them to simple say they didnt know it was happening I am quite skeptical.
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