Congolese fighters convicted of raping young girls in landmark case

Kavumu in east Congo known as the ‘rape capital of the world’, where sexual violence crimes are ignored

Ruth Maclean, West Africa correspondent
Wednesday 13 December 2017 22.44 GMT

Twelve members of a Congolese militia group have been convicted of raping 37 toddlers and young girls in a landmark case that lawmakers hope will deter potential future perpetrators.

Fighters from a group that christened itself Djeshi ya Yesu (The Army of Jesus), carried out the rapes in the belief they would give them supernatural powers on the battlefield, a court in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) heard.

Ten of the accused were convicted of crimes against humanity. The convictions represent an historic milestone in the fight against impunity for sexual violence crimes, particularly as the mastermind behind the attacks, a member of parliament, was among those convicted.

Between 2013 and 2016, nearly 50 children were abducted from their houses at night, raped, and left in fields or behind bushes near their homes in Kavumu, in eastern DRC.

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