Feminists For Choice

“It is more dangerous to be a woman than to be a soldier right now.”
Major General Patrick Cammaert, former UN Deputy Force Commander, describing the situation in eastern Congo, May 2008

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s history is one marred by violent colonial rule, rebellions, coups, permeable borders, and resource exploitation. In recent years a transitional government has had only nominal control over the country, as cross-border incursions from Uganda and Rwanda have devastated and destabilized the Northern Kivu province. Amnesty International reported, “Millions of Congolese have perished, and over a million more have been displaced.” This area is home to the largest UN peacekeeping mission, known as MONUC.

What makes this conflict especially disturbing is that women and children have been used as instruments of war to a degree that may be unparalleled in history, including the use and normalization of rape as a tool. The enough project has laid out ten reasons the DRC is the most dangerous place to be a woman. They are: Predatory Security Forces, Lawless Militias, A Culture of Impunity, The Resource Curse, Poverty, A Collapsed Health Care System, Internal Displacement, A Failing Education System, Gender Inequality and Cultural Barriers, and Inaction.

Inaction cuts pretty deep. That, combined with the issue of resources, amounts to a scathing indictment of the western consumer. The resources in which the DRC is so rich are the ones we use to power our phones, iPods, and other personal electronics while keeping a significant amount of bling on our celebrities (coltan, diamonds, etc…).  Eve Ensler may have said it best, “What is happening in Congo is the most brutal and rampant violence toward women in the world. If it continues to go unchecked, if there continues to be complete impunity, it sets a precedent, it expands the boundaries of what is permissible to do to women’s bodies in the name of exploitation and greed everywhere. It’s cheap warfare.”

I’m not going to go holier-than-thou on you here, I love my cell phone and iPod. But it’s time to realize that we as consumers are deeply implicated in this utter denial of human rights to women in the Congo. In the face of such despair and devastation it can be easy to feel helpless and give in to thinking that nothing can be done. But wait — it turns out that it might be just the time when our action could do the most good.

Mary Robinson, for Oxfam:

But women are more than just victims. They are agitators for a sustainable peace and agents of change. During my time in the DRC, I met strong female activists, who were enthusiastic about working with their sisters in Rwanda to build peace. In Rwanda I met strong women activists who in the same measure want to deepen links across borders. Both Presidents said that they wanted to support the efforts of women’s organisations working between Rwanda and the DRC to consolidate the peace. Such an exchange would be a way of building confidence between the two countries – and should be supported at the international level too. This is not fanciful optimism – women’s group working across the divides in Northern Ireland were instrumental in securing peace there.
With the thawing of relations between Rwanda and the DRC, we have a rare window of opportunity to make a difference to the lives of ordinary men and women who desperately want to return to their homes and live without the fear of violence. I still hear ringing in my ears the voices of the women in Goma calling for peace and wishing to link with their sisters – nos soeurs – in Rwanda. I heard the same message from the women I met in Kigali. The glimmer of hope in Congo might not last for long. If we don’t act now, this huge country in the heart of Africa could face tragic conflict for yet another decade.

Here are a few things you can do:
1.  Tell people about it!  Research it!  Tell them to research it! The more people know, the less able they are to claim ignorance on issues of such importance.  Feminists have long done this in the form of consciousness raising, and this situation certainly warrants a sustained effort for education.

2. Visit the enough project’s action website for this issue to easily send letters to congressional representatives and take a conflict minerals pledge.  The Senate has just had a hearing on this issue, so now seems like a great time to show people in elected office that this is an issue we care about!

3.  Reflect on your choices as a consumer.  Join Eve Ensler in calling for “rape-free” gadgets. Do research before making electronic purchases and don’t make unnecessary purchases. Boy/girl-cott companies that use minerals extracted in ways that encourage or allow systematic rape women.