Concern is mounting that British aid money may be funding programmes for police who are using rape as a tool of state-sanctioned torture against women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
The claims emerged during last week’s Ending sexual violence in conflict summit in London hosted by the UK foreign secretary, William Hague, and Angelina Jolie.
A report from the charity Freedom From Torture (FFT), has collated medical evidence from 34 female political activists who have fled to the UK from DRC. It has found that the country’s police and security personnel are systematically raping President Joseph Kabila’s female opponents.
This evidence has raised questions about the UK government’s programme to give more than £60m to agencies working with the Congolese national police and “internal security sector” to improve its performance and accountability.
The programme, run by the Department for International Development (DfID), states: “This programme will benefit Congolese citizens through improved security and justice delivery with a special attention to women and girls.”
One female political activist who fled to the UK after being detained, raped and tortured by police in the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, said: “Many are raped by secret police and other security officials. When I was living in Congo I didn’t see any improvement in the police. Perhaps the money from the UK government is making the police stronger so they can rape us more. While William Hague is calling for the elimination of rape as a weapon of war, his government is funding a police force that rapes with impunity.”…
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