PETITION
Please read the Petition and add your signature online:
PETITION FOR THE CONGOLESE WOMEN’S CAMPAIGN AGAINST SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN THE DRC INTENDED FOR THE MEMBERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
In the face of sexual violence committed during the conflict, women, local women’s associations and civil society have launched an urgent appeal (“SOS Femmes en Danger”). These unspeakable crimes have destroyed lives and paralyzed local communities for years to come.
No to impunity! Yes to effective reparation! These are the slogans of the activists spearheading the campaigns against sexual violence.
But while people were dancing in the cities on the day the National Campaign Against Sexual Violence was launched, women were still being raped with impunity in our villages. We need more than legislation to eradicate these crimes. Political will is needed to ensure that the Law Against Sexual Violence is effectively applied and to end the inertia of the legal system. An education campaign is also needed to mobilize society as well as a complete accompaniment programme for victims and their families.
The victims are full-fledged citizens and are vital to the transformation of Congolese society. Their voices must be heard, their needs fulfilled and their dignity restored. They must not be used as instruments to obtain funds, or as data to illustrate their hardship for the benefit of international organizations, so far from their daily reality.
This disconnect from reality is all too familiar to us as members of local women’s NGOs. We have been on the ground before, during and after the conflict. We are not just passing through, we are here to stay. At the moment, we are deeply concerned about our ability to sustain our activities in relationship based on dependency: we are not informed of international initiatives and are excluded from discussions with funding agencies. We feel disconnected, mistreated and scorned. What will happen when the international NGOs and UN agencies leave? We are much more than mere beneficiaries, we are unwavering spokeswomen committed to rebuilding the future of our country as stipulated in Security Council Resolution 1325.
Our message is intended for international NGOs, funding agencies and UN agencies: let’s work together! But let’s work together productively!
Recognize our expertise!
Recognize our experience!
Respect our work!
Get involved in all aspects of your interventions among victims, from fundraising to setting up campaigns and taking action on the ground!
What is the point of duplicating initiatives? What is the point of giving victims what they have not asked for? How can you claim to change the reality of victims when you do not speak their language and do not know their abilities and aspirations?
Everyday, we work with victims and their loved ones; we are the sister, the mother, the aunt, the grandmother, the neighbour. We know how to listen, we know how to give them a voice, we know how to mobilize the community and we understand the importance of forging ties with customary powers: give us sustainable tools to strengthen their own lives, their families, their communities and their society. Strengthening the autonomy of local NGOs will strengthen the autonomy of victims.
Without your support, our action will lose momentum. Without our partnership, your action will have little impact. Help us change the direction of the fight against sexual violence in the DRC.
This petition was signed by the following organizations:
Arche d'Alliance (ARAL) (Sud-Kivu)
Association des Femmes pour les Droits et la Démocratie (AFD) (Sud-Kivu)
Association des Femmes pour le Progrès Social et Culturel (AFPSC) (Est de la RDC)
Association des Mamans Chrétiennes pour l'Assistance aux Vulnérables (AMCAV) (Sud-Kivu)
Association pour la Défense des Droits des Femmes (Nord-Kivu)
Collectif des Associations Féminines de Beni (CAF/Beni) (Nord-Kivu)
ESSAIM (Cadre de concertation et d'action pour la défense des droits des femmes) (Est de la RDC)
Forum des Mamans de l'Ituri (FOMI) (Ituri)
Initiative des Femmes pour le Développement et l'Autopromotion (IFDA) (Sud-Kivu)
Réseau Femmes Développement / Ituri (Province Orientale)
Solidarité des Femmes Activistes des Droits Humains (SOFAD) (Sud-Kivu)
Solidarité des Femmes en Difficultés (SOFED) ( Sud-Kivu)
Solidarité Féminine pour la Paix et le Développement Intégral (SOFEPADI) (Nord-Kivu, Ituri)
Solidarité et Paix pour le Développement Intégré (SOPADI) (Sud-Kivu)
Syndicat des Femmes Défavorisées (SYFED) (Sud-Kivu)
Synergie des Femmes contre les Violences Sexuelles (SFVS) (Nord-Kivu)
Volontaires pour le développement Auto-Centre (VODAC/ASBL) (Maniema)
Collectif des Femmes au Maniema (COFEMA) (Maniema)
Centre des Femmes pour le DPM (Maniema)
Union paysanne pour le développement intègre (U.P.D.I.) (Maniema)
Ligue de Femme pourle développement du Maniema (L.F.D.M.) (Maniema)
Soutien aux actions des Femmes indigentes au Maniema (SAFI-MMA) (Maniema)
Mouvement pour encadrement des Femmes sans voix à la Base (M.E.F.V.B) (Maniema)
Union paysanne de Pangi-Kailo-Kasongo-Kabambare (UPKA) (Maniema)
Groupe d'action pour le développement de Maniema (GADEMA) (Maniema)
Jeunesse unie pour la paix (JUP) (Maniema)
Projet d'assistance à l'enfance défavorisé de Maniema (PAED) (Maniema)
Femmes volontaires pour la reconstruction et la paix (FVRP) (Maniema)
Femme d'Abord (Maniema)
AFPERMA (Maniema)
PDAPN (Maniema)
CFDM (Maniema)
AFAFAC (Maniema)
YMCA (Maniema)
Association pour le développement communautaire des Femmes (ADECOP) (Maniema)
CARREGO/Maniema (CARREGO) (Maniema)
RPE/Maniema (RPE) (Maniema)
Maniema - Libertés (Maniema)
APROF/MMA (Maniema)
ALFED (Maniema)
AFILMA (Maniema)
APRODEF (Maniema)
ADIF/MMA (Maniema)
APEMA (Maniema)
UWAKU (Maniema)
DFF/MA (Maniema)
A.J.F. MA (Maniema)
BACOP/Maniema (Maniema)
REFED/Maniema (Maniema)
Prorigawamama (Maniema)
With support from:
Coalition for the Rights of Women in Conflict Situations (Canada)
Rights & Democracy (Canada)