Week 9

I’m approaching the end of my time in Geneva! I spent my second-last week continuing my project on Democratic Republic of the Congo. I’m creating a record of GSF’s advocacy in the country over the last few years, which coincided with the promulgation of several laws and the eventual creation of a (controversial) national reparations fund. GSF is currently reassessing how it might proceed in DRC going forward, so it is an opportune time for the organization to reflect on its work.

Here's a simplified background on the country. What is now DRC was a Belgian colony until 1960, when it became an independent republic. A political crisis shortly thereafter resulted in the execution of  DRC’s first democratically elected prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, and ushered in a 32-year dictatorship headed by Mobutu Sese Seko. By the early 1990s, Mobutu’s power had declined and a number of regional and national actors instigated an armed power struggle. The Rwandan Civil War roped DRC into conflict with Rwanda and Uganda, who waged a joint seven-month campaign that ultimately ousted Mobutu. In the following years, civil war erupted within DRC as ethnic groups vied for control over the country’s natural resources. Although Congolese authorities have signed a number of ceasefire agreements over the last two decades, political instability and violence persist as rebel groups continue to reappear. The last year has been especially fraught following the withdrawal of the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in DRC (MONUSCO) from South Kivu, an eastern province.

The turmoil of the last 30 years has taken a massive humanitarian toll on the people of DRC. The Congolese army, rebel groups, and foreign militias systematically employed sexual violence to terrorize civilians. While some sources estimate that the number of CRSV survivors in DRC ranges from 200,000 to 250,000, UN Women estimates that more than a million women have been raped over the course of all the conflicts in DRC. Whatever the actual figure, it is clear that thousands upon thousands of Congolese suffer from the horrors of CRSV today.

GSF is not able to reach all those in need, but it’s made a start. In 2020, GSF and Panzi Foundation partnered to launch an interim reparative measures (IRM) project in four locations across three provinces in DRC. The project encompassed a variety of initiatives aimed at promoting the mental, physical, and financial wellbeing of survivors. These measures included the provision of psychological care, vocational training, and financial compensation that survivors could invest in income-generating activities. Mobile clinics traveled to remote areas to provide medical and psychiatric care. Some survivors received legal assistance obtaining birth certificates for their children born of CRSV, who might otherwise have had no legal status. Along the way, the local steering committee heading the project worked directly with survivors to ensure that these initiatives were actually wanted and helpful. After survivors indicated that they wanted to build community centers, committees formed at the local level to make these centers a reality. Intended to be safe places where survivors can learn skills, receive health and legal services, and participate in women’s rights initiatives, three centers were inaugurated in 2024. Another is slated to open this year.

Between 2020 and 2024, about a thousand survivors participated in the project across the four locations. An independent audit found that the project helped survivors improve their lives in every aspect measured in the evaluation. For more details on the project and its impact, please see this report.

The political and security situation in DRC make GSF’s work especially tricky at the moment, but I’ve seen firsthand that GSF is carefully considering how to proceed. I am grateful that I’ve had the opportunity to see the organization work behind the scenes.