TAÏGAPRESSE IMAGES

Congo, the Ravages of War

"They come every week now. Soldiers push down our door and force me to have sex with them in front of my children. My husband left us after the first time. He was scared they had given me aids. They threaten me with guns, saying they will kill my children if I don't. Once they forced my nine-year-old daughter"... Nita's quiet voice trails off. In the half-light of the feeding centre in Murhesa, Eastern Congo, the women's sad eyes and stories, each chilling and brutal as the last, are haunting. Hundreds of traumatised women like Nita have walked for miles to reach the sanctuary of this centre, their starving children barely Clinging to life. A violent war has plagued Eastern Congo since 1994, when Hutu extremists sought sanctuary in the region following their part in the Rwandan genocide, in which over half a million people were massacred. The new Rwandan government force, the RPA, followed them over the border, seeking revenge. Armies from neighbouring Uganda, Zimbabwe and Angola, along with numerous rebel groups, also became involved. Congo's government forces from Kinshasa have tried in vain to regain control of the vast area. A recent upsurge of fighting in the Northeast has focussed attention on The region, yet thousands of women continue to suffer in silence. "Women and girls are being forced to pay the price of this war. They are now so traumatised they will never have normal lives," a gynaecologist working in the region said. " For every woman who comes to me for help there are thousands more. For a child who has watched his mother and sisters raped, for the babies born because of rape, to the little girl raped so often she will never walk, our society is being crippled by this sexual violence." Congo - 27 images - added Jully 2003

Photographer
Kate Holt
Country
Congo
Published
July 2003
Images
27
Reference
329-50087
Many of these women are pregnant as a result of being raped during attacks on their villages.329_50087_01 This mother fled with her children following a serie of brutal attacks on their village. Her husband deserted her because she had been…329_50087_02 A mother nurses her starving child, having walked for 30 days through the bush to reach the sanctuary of this hospital in Kalemie,…329_50087_03 A mother with her daughter, born as a result of being raped when Rwandan soldiers attacked her village.329_50087_04 Portrait of a young girl, repeatedly raped.329_50087_05 This woman and her baby come from a village north of Goma. The mother has been raped repeatedly over the last few years, first by…329_50087_06 Raped by Rwandan Soldiers when they attacked her village last year, this 67 year old woman was abandoned by her husband and children as…329_50087_07 Portrait of a young girl, repeatedly raped.329_50087_08 Hundreds of children and babies have died due to malnutrition. In a recent mortality survey the International Rescue Committee estimated…329_50087_09 This woman’s house was repeatedly attacked by Rwandan soldiers in Eastern Congo. Her husband abandoned her, fearing she had contracted…329_50087_10 Women are so terrified of being raped by soldiers that they remain at home, and are not planting crops or gathering food to feed their…329_50087_11 These children have arrived in hospital in eastern Congo, severely malnourished, having walked with their mother for three months…329_50087_12 Over sixty five per cent of foreign troops in Eastern Congo are HIV positive. It is being spread amongst the Congolese people through…329_50087_13 An aid worker holds the hand of an orphaned baby who is HIV positive.329_50087_14 Hundreds of children and babies have died due to malnutrition. In a recent mortality survey the International Rescue Committee estimated…329_50087_15 A child awaits food at the nutritional centre.329_50087_16 A mother and her young family awaiting help in a hospital in eastern Congo. All told horrific stories of sexual violence perpetrated by…329_50087_17 A malnourished child at a feeding centre in Northeastern congo.329_50087_18 This two year old boy was born after his mother was raped repeatedly by soldiers when they attacked her village.329_50087_19 Cholera is one of the major causes of death in the Congo and lack of access to clean water has been increased by recent fighting in the…329_50087_20 A woman is told she is pregnant after being raped when soldiers attacked her village. She already has 7 children and her husband has…329_50087_21 Cholera is one of the major causes of death in the Congo and lack of access to clean water has been increased by recent fighting in the…329_50087_22 Cholera is one of the major causes of death in the Congo and lack of access to clean water has been increased by recent fighting in the…329_50087_23 Un bébé et sa mère dans un centre de traitement du choléra, dans l'est du Congo.329_50087_24 Thousands of women have been abandoned by their husbands after being raped by soldiers. Desperate for money to feed their children, they…329_50087_25 A gardening project established by an aid agency allows women to grow their own food in relative security, prevented from being attacked…329_50087_26 A woman stands outside her home in a village near Bukavu, that has been subject to frequent attacks by the military convoys. They no…329_50087_27
← Previous feature24 Hours of HoolitouristsNext feature →Gilberto Gil, Portrait of a Pop Star and Minister