Twenty- five of us gathered together and said we should rape ten women each, and we did it. I've raped fifty three women and children of five or six years old." - Anonymous 22 year-old Congolese Soldier
Rape is a crime that is abundantly found throughout the Congo. The Rebels have found themselves consumed with alcohol, violence, and power to the extent of feeling they can do whatever they want. They have found themselves so consumed with the war, which ultimately has brainwashed them. Due to the violence, assault, and rape many women are rejected not only by their communities, but also by their husbands.
My head is still not right. I thought I had AIDS, and now my husband mocks me. He calls me the wife of a soldier. He rejects me." -Nzigire Chibalonza
It was reported that over 65% of those who have been raped over the past 15 years were children, 10% of which were children under 10 years of age. Many of the child soldiers who have been taken captive from refugee camps have also been sexually assaulted.
In the areas of The Congo where children have access to school, many children and parents are too scared to go, due to the crime. Children face being assaulted, kidnapped, or even killed on their way to and from school. Schools are a popular place in which children are taken from and trained to be rebel soldiers.
_One afternoon when I was preparing the evening meal, Augustine – who loved to play with other children – left the house. Just fifteen minutes later a neighbor brought us shocking news that our little girl had been kidnapped by armed men…Finally, her father could not bear it and decided to go outside. It was our girl, lying on the ground, abandoned and exposed, naked as a frog… My daughter Augustine, only six years old, had been raped by grown men." - Mother of Augustine