Their accounts shed light on how rape is a horrifically common aspect of the conflict in the DRC, often committed with impunity against women and girls of all ages.
‘My grandmother could do nothing’
In January, the rampaging AFC rebel coalition stormed Goma and clashed with the Congolese military. Electricity, basic services and water were cut off, while running street battles plunged the city into days of unrelenting violence that claimed some 7,000 lives. The bodies of the dead filled the streets.
Trapped in this hellscape was 14-year-old Mudaralla, an orphan. She heard the gunfire and artillery explosions grow louder and closer to the home she shared with her only guardian, her elderly grandmother. This is her account, as shared with CNN.
“Two men with guns forced their way into our home. My grandmother could do nothing but watch as they raped me. She cried, but she was powerless. We kept it a secret. I didn’t tell anyone. My grandmother was too ashamed and afraid,” Mudaralla’s account reads.
“My grandmother’s biggest fear is that I might be pregnant or have contracted an infection. I don’t know what the future holds.”
Mudaralla’s rape remained a secret until about a month after the assault, when a community outreach worker, affiliated with UNICEF, visited her neighborhood and encouraged her to receive treatment. Countless more girls suffer in silence and, even for those who seek help, medical care and psychological support are scant.
“Survivors are facing severe barriers to accessing immediate care due to the ongoing conflict,” Greg Ramm, Save the Children’s country director for DRC, told CNN. “The scale of these violations is staggering and incomprehensible.”
Some 400,000 people were displaced by the outbreak of fighting earlier this year, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR.
In the chaos, hundreds of children were separated from their families, leaving them even more at risk of sexual violence by parties to the conflict, according to UNICEF.