Kinshasa, June 19th, 2025 (CPA) .- On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, CPA interviewed Gisele Kapinga, lawyer at the Kinshasa-Gombe Bar and president of the Association of Women Lawyers of DRC on the issue, who, moreover, welcomed the legal progress made by the country in the prevention, punishing and redressing conflict-related sexual violence, while noting the efforts that still need to be made.
Question1. What does Congolese law currently provide for in terms of preventing and punishing sexual violence committed during conflict?
Answer: In order to prevent and punish sexual violence during conflict, Congolese law (the State) has armed itself with specific laws and appropriate policies or strategies. These include the 2022 law on the protection and reparation of victims of conflict-related sexual violence; the Penal Code as amended to date; the Military Penal Code, which punishes sexual violence in times of conflict as international crimes without statute of limitations (Law on Sexual Violence); the law on child protection; and the relevant international instruments ratified by DRC (ICCPR, Geneva Convention, Rome Statute, Convention on the Rights of Women, Convention on the Rights of the Child, Maputo Protocol). In terms of policies and strategies, there is the creation of Fonarev and Ciavar to strengthen reparation and holistic care for victims of conflict-related sexual violence; the launch by the Head of State in 2021 of the ‘Immediate Zero Tolerance for Sexual Violence and Impunity’ campaign; the establishment of the 122 hotline for reporting incidents; free legal aid for victims; the project to establish a unified national database on GBV to be fed by investigations and reported cases.
Question2. What role does the national justice system play in supporting victims of sexual violence related to armed conflict?
Answer: The justice system plays an indispensable role in supporting victims in asserting their fundamental rights, including their right to human dignity and physical and psychological integrity, as well as in establishing expedited procedures in this area.
Question3. How does the Congolese legal system collaborate with international partners to strengthen the fight against sexual violence in conflict situations? Answer: This collaboration involves the ratification of relevant international treaties (see the non-exhaustive list above) and collaboration with UN agencies and international organisations.
Furthermore, DRC sends its periodic universal reports and special reports on sexual violence in conflict situations to the Human Rights Council and various UN committees, as was the case last March during the 90th session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in Geneva. The objective for the Congolese State is to report on how it is fulfilling the commitments it has made under international human rights instruments. On June 19th, 2015, the United Nations General Assembly has adopted by consensus resolution A/RES/69/293 proclaiming the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict in order to raise awareness of the need to end it, to show solidarity with the victims and to pay tribute to those who are fighting on the front line to eliminate these crimes. This date was chosen to commemorate the landmark adoption on June 19th, 2008 of resolution S/RES/1820(2008), in which the Security Council condemned the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war that can impede peace building. The theme of this year’s event at UN Headquarters in New York is ‘breaking the Cycle, Healing the Scars: Addressing the Intergenerational Effects of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence.’ACP/