http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6335617/
Congo said unable to help 40,000 rape victims Amnesty International: Hospitals lack electricity, water, beds, doors Updated: 9:21 a.m. ET Oct. 26, 2004 KHINSHASA, Congo - Fighters in Congo have raped at least 40,000 women and girls over the past six years yet the health system in the central African country can offer the victims little help, Amnesty International said on Tuesday. Although war in the Democratic Republic of Congo was declared over in 2003, fighting has continued sporadically in the east with some horrific rape cases occurring in June this year, according to the human rights group. Amnesty called for an expert team to assess the needs of the health sector, urged Congolese authorities to take a much tougher line against sexual violence and demanded a national and international effort to improve security in the east. All of the more than 20 groups involved in Congo's conflict had committed rape and sexual violence, it said in a statement. Rape as a weapon in Sudan As one example of many crimes, Amnesty cited testimony from the youngest of three sisters raped by up to 20 members of a faction which seized the eastern town of Bukavu in June. "Jeanette was raped by seven soldiers in the storeroom, Francine by eight soldiers in the shop," 16-year-old Edith said. "They put me in the bathroom. I fought with five of the soldiers when they tried to make my brothers watch me being raped. But they beat me so hard." Only two eastern hospitals can treat survivors of sexual violence, Amnesty said, and hospitals often have no water or electricity and lack doors, windows and beds because of looting. "The government and the international community must act now to ensure access to medical care for thousands of rape survivors and ensure that the rehabilitation of the health care system is a priority," Amnesty campaign director Stephen Bowen said. Copyright 2004 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
