WOMEN'S DAY : Thousands of Congolese women don black for peace march
From politicians to displaced persons, women from all walks of life marched through Bukavu, capital of South Kivu province.
WOMEN'S DAY : Thousands of Congolese women don black for peace march
NewVision Reporter
@NewVision
Thousands of women dressed in black to protest for peace in eastern DR Congo on Friday, International Women's Day, and to mourn those killed in conflicts that have ravaged the region for decades.
From politicians to displaced persons, women from all walks of life marched through Bukavu, capital of South Kivu province.
"We, the women of Congo, refuse war, rape and the plundering of our resources," their banners read.
"We're wearing black and we're marching to express our anger, our dismay," said women's rights activist Jeannine Kabyahura, one of many who also marched further north at Bunia, the provincial capital of Ituri province.
Last month Gender Minister Mireille Masangu called on Congolese women to dress in black for the day instead of colours, as a way of "sharing the pain" of the victims of conflict.
"Many women are killed in Ituri. In 2024 alone, 68 have already been killed by armed groups in Djugu and Irumu territory," Kabyahura added.
After eight years of dormancy, the M23 (March 23) rebellion took up arms again in late 2021, seizing large swathes of North Kivu, which lies between Ituri and South Kivu provinces.
The M23 rebels cut off all land access to North Kivu capital Goma except the Rwandan border road in early February.
"We sleep in our homes, but our compatriots in North Kivu spend the night outside," said Jacqueline Ngengele, head of the province's gender and family division, at the Bukavu march.
In a memorandum handed over to the governor's office the South Kivu women called on the international community to "impose sanctions on aggressor countries and warlords".
They urged regional bodies to "actively involve women in the various frameworks, initiatives and peace processes" and the Democratic Republic of Congo's government to "re-establish State authority throughout the country".
There was no march in Goma but a conference was attended by the gender minister, who expressed hope women would be more involved "in the search for peace".