Violence against women by armed groups is not tolerated in the DRC

Maat for the CEDAW Committee: Violations by armed groups must be subject to a real investigation

Pasha: Mechanisms for reporting sexual exploitation and violence need to be in place

Progressed Maat Foundation for Peace, Development and Human Rights, in an oral intervention before the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, on the impact of armed groups on the continuing violations of women's rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And that is within the work of the seventy-third session of the treaty committee in Geneva, Switzerland.

The intervention indicated the increasing number of women and girls who are victims of sexual violence, as a result of the violence of armed groups, and called for the necessity to submit to the actual investigation. The intervention also addressed the legal challenges facing the Democratic Republic of the Congo, especially those related to domestic violence against women.

During the intervention, Abdel Rahman Pasha, a researcher at the Foundation's African Affairs Unit, called for the necessity to provide mechanisms for reporting sexual exploitation, to include penalties for forms of domestic violence and to explicitly prohibit marital rape.

Basha also called for zero tolerance for sexual violence by bringing perpetrators to justice, regardless of their identity, ensuring protection for victims and witnesses, and providing adequate compensation to victims.

It is worth noting that the Maat Foundation participates in the work of the 41st session of the Council’s work with an international mission consisting of 26 individuals from 8 European and African countries. The Maat Foundation also holds a number of seminars and meetings on the sidelines of the session.