Conflict and health
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Conflict and health · Mar 2009
Sexual violence in the protracted conflict of DRC programming for rape survivors in South Kivu.
Despite international acknowledgement of the linkages between sexual violence and conflict, reliable data on its prevalence, the circumstances, characteristics of perpetrators, and physical or mental health impacts is rare. Among the conflicts that have been associated with widespread sexual violence has been the one in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). ⋯ We have documented that in the DRC conflict sexual violence has been - and continues to be - highly prevalent in a wide area in the East of the country. Humanitarian programming in this field is challenging due to the multiple needs of rape survivors. The easily accessible, integrated medical and psycho-social care that the programme offered apparently responded to the needs of many rape survivors in this area.