剛果：法律診所幫助性侵受害者

Julie* is just 10 years old. She is one of the clients at the legal clinic in Muganga， North Kivu. The clinic works to support victims of sexual violence and give them new hope.

Julie’s father did not understand what had happened to his daughter and decided to punish her by keeping her out of school. Her mother explains： “He thought that she wanted to play at being a mother by going with a boy. So he said that if she wanted to be a mother， she wouldn’t go to school anymore.”

The rapist is not yet 18 and is being held a rehabilitation centre for minors. Most of the offenders are young， out-of-work men. The region’s unemployment rate is approximately 85%， and this forced idleness， combined with a lack of education， drives them to commit all sorts of crimes. Sexual violence is one tragic example.

Comprehensive follow-up

It is in this context that a joint United Nations programme has been established to combat the prevalence of sexual violence in the eastern part of the country. Coordinated by the UNDP and with CAD18 million in funding from the Canadian government， the project advocates comprehensive follow-up with victims， addressing medical， psychological， legal， family， social， political， legislative， educational and economic aspects.

Victims are first taken to a hospital for medical care. The doctors prepare a report， which serves as evidence during legal proceedings. The victims also receive psycho-social support and may decide to bring action through the legal clinic. Following an investigation， the matter often goes to court. The clinic monitors the process closely.

This programme was launched in fall 2014. The staff has already followed 1，410 cases of sexual violence； 264 have gone to court， with 152 decisions rendered. Nearly 200 victims have also benefited from reintegration into their community with support from community centres where women can obtain training to become financially independent.

Creating awareness within the community

Unfortunately， victims often hesitate to report sexual violence because they lack confidence in the justice system or out of fear of being stigmatized. Many choose an out-of-court settlement. “They would rather receive US $200 in damages immediately from the family of the guilty party， rather than the US $450 provided in a legal judgment，” explains Mr. John， the attorney responsible for monitoring these matters.

That is why the programme also allocates resources to prevention and creating awareness to change behaviour and enable victims of sexual crimes to be reintegrated in a community that traditionally rejects them.

The Muganga legal clinic thus organizes information sessions for women as well as for community leaders and local chiefs. This is how Julie’s mother found the clinic and learned that there were ways to help her child.

Thanks to mediation provided by clinic， Julie has returned to school after a four month absence.

Sustainable solutions

The UNDP has a long history of working to combat sexual violence in the DRC， coordinating a large-scale programme on access to justice from 2006 to 2013. The goal was to restore confidence in the legal system by improving access to the courts for victims of sexual violence， by teaching police how to conduct inquiries and judges how to prosecute alleged perpetrators.

The programme funded 85 projects， for a total budget of more than US $28 million. It helped to establish 140 community organizations to protect victims of violence. More than 25，000 victims of sexual violence have received medical care and nearly 40，000 have received psycho-social support leading to the social and economic reintegration of 13，843 women and girls.

* not her real name

剛果一些地區失業率高達85%以上，加上教育普及率偏低，青年犯罪泛濫，其中就包括性侵。在這種背景下，該國東部啟動了一個聯合國項目，以抗擊性侵暴力事件。該項目呼吁對受害者進行全面的跟進幫助，提高社區意識，并提供可持續的解決方案。在該項目的幫助下，已經有超過兩萬五千名受害者得到了救助，大約四萬受害者接受了心理治療，13，843名婦女和女童已經重新融入社會。

[http：//www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/ourstories/RDC-lutte-contre-violences-sexuelles/]