{"id":143383,"date":"2026-05-26T07:15:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T07:15:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/democratic-republic-of-the-congo-drc-crisis-children-subjected-to-deliberate-systemic-sexual-violence\/"},"modified":"2026-05-26T07:15:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T07:15:21","slug":"democratic-republic-of-the-congo-drc-crisis-children-subjected-to-deliberate-systemic-sexual-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/democratic-republic-of-the-congo-drc-crisis-children-subjected-to-deliberate-systemic-sexual-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) crisis: Children subjected to deliberate, systemic sexual violence"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK, United States of America\u00a0—\u00a0Stigma, fear, and insecurity means many cases go unreported, creating a hidden epidemic of sexual violence that should \u201cshake us to our core\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sexual violence against children in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reached staggering proportions, with the UN Children\u2019s Fund (UNICEF) reporting thousands of new cases in just two months \u2013 evidence that it\u2019s being used as a systemic weapon of war and deliberate terror tactic.<\/p>\n

Spokesperson James Elder\u00a0told<\/a>\u00a0reporters in Geneva via video link from Goma that\u00a0children could account for up to 45 per cent of the nearly 10,000 cases of rape and sexual violence documented in January and February, amid heightened tensions between Rwanda-backed M23 rebels and Government forces across the mineral-rich region, where dozens of armed groups are active.<\/p>\n

This translates to a horrifying reality \u2013 \u201ca child was raped every half an hour,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not talking about isolated incidents; we are talking about a systemic crisis. We are seeing survivors as young as toddlers. It is a weapon of war and a deliberate tactic of terror. And it destroys families and communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

A hidden epidemic of sexual violence<\/strong><\/p>\n

The crisis is likely worse than the reported figures suggest, Mr. Elder added. Stigma, fear, and insecurity means many cases go unreported, creating a hidden epidemic of sexual violence that should \u201cshake us to our core.\u201d<\/p>\n

He underscored the urgent need for intervention by the international community.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat should that action look like?\u00a0We need additional prevention efforts, survivor-centred services, and safe, accessible ways for survivors to report abuse without fear. Survivors must see the world stand with them, not turn away. And perpetrators must face justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

He further warned that the already dire situation is being exacerbated by a growing funding shortfall. Critical services for survivors \u2013 such as medical care, psychological support and legal assistance \u2013 are being severely impacted by funding cuts.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn just one hospital I visited this week, 127 survivors of rape had no access to PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis) kits \u2026\u00a0they are no longer getting even the basic medical care they need,” Mr. Elder said, highlighting the consequences of budget constraints.<\/p>\n

If the funding gap is not filled, the agency estimates that 250,000 children will miss out on essential services related to gender-based violence and protection in armed conflict over the next 12 weeks alone.<\/p>\n

Long-term consequences<\/strong><\/p>\n

The funding crisis extends beyond immediate support.<\/p>\n

In 2026, projections indicate that 100,000 children in the DRC could miss out on lifesaving measles vaccinations, nearly two million children will not be screened for malnutrition, and almost half a million will be left without access to clean water.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cost of inaction is not abstract. It is measured in preventable suffering and lost futures,\u201d Mr. Elder said.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Stigma, fear, and insecurity means many cases go unreported, creating a hidden epidemic of sexual violence that should \u201cshake us to our core\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":143384,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2653],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[2583],"class_list":{"0":"post-143383","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-article"},"authors":[{"term_id":2583,"user_id":1,"is_guest":0,"slug":"mermar","display_name":"mermar","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b97554d899a7ce8df2bc286c2f73beda56ebbc97d5d9ced74f7a04498e0fb0d3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143383","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143383"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143383\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":143763,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143383\/revisions\/143763"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143384"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143383"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143383"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143383"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/afromagazine.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=143383"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}