Marie, displaced by the Ituri Conflict, cleans the altar of the Kilo-Mission church. Hugh Kinsella Cunningham: Kilo, Ituri Province, November 6th 2021.
Dozens of families have taken shelter in the church, with their villages unsafe to return to due to the presence of CODECO militants. Several months on from the date of this photography, in February 2022, at least 18 civilians were murdered in this church during a CODECO raid.
Cycles of Conflict
Civilians in the Democratic Republic of Congo often experience multiple displacements throughout their lives, as they repeatedly have to flee armed violence and, in doing so, abandon everything they own. They find shelter in schools, camps, or – like Marie in this photograph – in churches.
The ADF is regularly accused of civilian massacres and has pledged allegiance to Islamic State. In turn, there is a heavy Congolese army presence in the region to combat the ADF. Large numbers of soldiers often brings insecurity to an area as units start to prey on the population they are supposed to protect.
Bahati, S., Maubert, C. & Kinsella Cunningham, H. (2023) ‘Actors of Change: female activists fight for peace in the DRC’, https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/mar/08/actors-of-change-female-activists-fight-for-peace-in-the-drc-photo-essay
The peace activists featured in Hugh Kinsella Cunningham’s photography project seek to break this recurring cycle in multiple ways: by advocating for the protection of civilians but also by teaching communities about human rights, encouraging armed groups to release child soldiers, or mediating local disputes before they turn to yet more violent conflict.
‘In Rutshuru women peace activists endeavour to get children out of armed groups. (…) Women explained to the group leaders that they are waging war, sure, but in whose interest? They said children who are in the forest will fail their studies, and so they should be allowed to go home and start a normal life. And they listened to them. You know, when it’s your mother who comes, when it’s the lady from your neighbourhood who comes, your friend’s mother, men cannot say no. Women speak with their heart, they are here to help not judge.’
Nelly Mbangu, Dynamique des Femmes Juristes, Goma
Researchers Camille Maubert and Sifa Bahati outlined a wide range of interventions undertaken by women in the DRC in their efforts to protect civilians in a recent Guardian article: Bahati, S., Maubert, C. & Kinsella Cunningham, H. (2023) ‘Actors of Change: female activists fight for peace in the DRC’, https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/mar/08/actors-of-change-female-activists-fight-for-peace-in-the-drc-photo-essay.
‘In one instance, women in Beni, north-east DRC, complained that the families of soldiers, who are often posted to the east of the country from different provinces, had been stealing farmland and food from the community. Peace activists Wivine Bayengo and Faila Kataliko convened talks between the military garrison and local communities to resolve their grievances openly. Beni is at the centre of the insurgency by the Allied Democratic Forces.’
‘In Rutshuru, on the frontline of the current fighting with M23, another peace activist, Liberata Buratwa, is running a network of women who work as peace monitors. “Here, insecurity is a cycle,” she says, as she watches a stream of newly arrived families seek shelter wherever they can – in churches, schools and even a football stadium. Gathering a crowd around her, she asks them questions: Which roads had they used to flee? Where was the most intense fighting? Which villages were no longer safe?’
‘In Butembo, another peace activist, Rose Kahambu Tuombeane, attests to the recurring incidents of rape, intimidation, extortion and theft carried out by soldiers.
“Sexual violence is rampant,” she says, with women targeted as they go to the fields or search for water and firewood. “We give them advice to protect themselves, like walking in groups, but recently attackers are getting bolder.”
To prevent violence, Tuombeane and her colleagues organise meetings with the commanding officers to allow women to voice their complaints and demand sanctions. “There is a long way to go,” she says, “but these dialogues are successful and today the community lives in peace with the soldiers.”’
‘Across town, Lydie Kake is also working to ensure women in remote conflict zones have access to justice. “We want any woman who has been attacked to find her peace,”the lawyer says. As many women cannot afford legal fees, her association pays the US$20 (£17) each case costs to take through a military court.
Kake attends to and cares for complainants throughout the challenging process. “It is not easy. Victims will often withdraw their statements when they see the soldiers.” She explained that those who denounce their attackers may be killed in reprisal to discourage others from coming forward and seeking justice.’