Breaking The Silence Events featured in The New York Times
10/17/2008
V-DAY and UNICEF Sponsored "Women Breaking the Silence" events featured in The New York Times
Rape Victims' Words Help Jolt Congo Into Change, by The New York Times Africa reporter Jeffrey Gettleman, features the "Women Breaking the Silence" events which took place in the the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in September as part of the V-Day and UNICEF campaign - STOP RAPING OUR GREATEST RESOURCE: POWER TO THE WOMEN AND GIRLS OF DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO. The campaign, which launched in August 2007, has held over 90 grassroots forums in the DRC, educating women and men about the issue of sexual violence, the issue of impunity and individuals' legal and human rights. It has also raised the profile of the issue of rape in the DRC on a global scale, both within the media and with key stakeholders within the government and NGO arenas.
The article features survivors of sexual violence who publicly spoke out about their rapes in the historic events organized by the campaign. Eve, local psychologists, V-Day and UNICEF staff worked with women survivors to prepare them for their testimonies. A powerful video accompanies the piece on The New York Times website, featuring testimony by Honorata and Pasquazine, two survivors , our UNICEF partners, and Eve.
Click here to read the article and watch the video >
Donate to STOP RAPING OUR GREATEST RESOURCE: POWER TO THE WOMEN AND GIRLS OF DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO, a global campaign that is:
- Raising awareness about the level of sexual violence in the DRC
- Advocating for change on local, provincial, national and international levels
- Providing support to activists in the DRC and around the globe who are working to end the atrocities and change perceptions about sexual violence
- Raising funds to build the City of Joy in Bukavu, South Kivu--a project of Panzi Hospital in partnership with V-Day and UNICEF-- that will be a refuge for healed women survivors of rape and torture, providing them with leadership development, educational and income-generating opportunities
For more information on the Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource: Power To The Women and Girls of the DRC Campaign please visit www.vday.org/drcongo