NOWHERE SAFE: SEXUAL VIOLENCE CRISIS ENGULFS EASTERN DRC

Wed 06 August 2025:

Humanitarian efforts overwhelmed as armed conflict fuels unprecedented attacks on women and children.

A catastrophic humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where armed conflict has led to a surge in sexual violence, with women and children bearing the brunt of the atrocities. Humanitarian organisations on the ground, like Doctors Without Borders (MSF), report being completely overwhelmed by the scale of the violence, which all parties to the conflict are accused of perpetrating.

The situation has deteriorated dramatically since the M23 armed group, allegedly backed by Rwanda, seized control of major cities like Goma and Bukavu in early 2025. This has triggered mass displacement, with over two million people now internally displaced in the region. For these vulnerable populations, there is nowhere safe.

Monica Genya, Association Coordinator for MSF Southern Africa, described the grim reality in a recent interview with Salaamedia, stating, “rape and sexual violence is more and more being used as a tool of war.” She explained that the most vulnerable, including “children younger than 10 years old, women older than 70, and everywhere in between, are being violated.”

These attacks often occur as women and girls carry out daily survival activities like searching for food or gathering firewood.

The violence is not confined to conflict zones. Women who flee to what they believe are safe havens, such as the homes of host families, often face further abuse.

“A lot of women and children are fleeing to where they thought was safe… and then encountering trauma, again, from male members of the families that they are staying with,” Genya said.

This cycle of violence leaves survivors in a state of perpetual fear and trauma. The reality for many is that there is simply nowhere safe.

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A crisis of impunity and dwindling support

The challenges are compounded by a severe lack of resources and a climate of impunity. According to a UN report, all parties involved in the conflict are systematically using sexual violence as a tactic of war. Identifying and prosecuting perpetrators is nearly impossible, especially in cases of gang rape, leaving survivors with little hope for justice.

“It’s really hard to identify and bring to justice the perpetrators of this violence,” Genya noted, emphasising MSF’s concern for the long-term mental health of victims.

MSF provides critical medical care, including post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) kits to prevent HIV and other STDs if survivors can be reached within 72 hours. However, their efforts are a drop in the ocean.

The organisation has seen a “withdrawal and reduction of other NGOs in the area due to the war, but also due to the worldwide government AIDS cuts,” Genya stated. This has left MSF as practically the only organisation providing these services in some areas, and they are “very overwhelmed.”

The numbers are staggering. In 2024 alone, MSF treated nearly 40 000 women for sexual violence in North Kivu province, a record high. Between January and April 2025, after M23 took Goma, MSF treated over 7 400 survivors in the city and another 2 400 in nearby Saké.

Despite the clear and urgent need, international support has faltered. The dismantling of camps for displaced people by M23 has scattered survivors, making it even harder for aid to reach them. For women and children in eastern DRC, there is nowhere safe from the physical and psychological scars of this war.

MSF has issued an urgent appeal for international partners to return and scale up their support. “We are calling for all the warring parties to seize and to protect the most vulnerable members of the society,” Genya urged, appealing to the global community not to “turn a blind eye to what is happening in Eastern DRC.”