Kinshasa, DR Congo (PANA) - Women from different provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) here on Wednesday officially presented the national strategy document on gender-based violence, PANA reported from.
The presentation was made outside the launch of the international campaign on the "16 days of activism against gender-based violence".
The Congolese Minister for Gender, Family Welfare and Children, Marie-Ange Lukiana Mufuankolo, said during the event that the document aimed to contribute to the prevention of gender-based violence and care for victims.
"Bodies of women and young girls have always been sacred in our society and inaccessible. But, nowadays, they are victims of various forms of violence which harm their human potential and reduce their contribution to the sustainable development in Congo," Lukiana said.
Wars and armed conflicts in the country's history do not only result in mass killings of Congolese people.
Over five million lives have been lost to wars.
The Gender Minister underscored that thousands of women and young girls are victims of violence of all kinds, particularly of sexual abuses, resulting in two mi l lion displaced people all around the country, not to mention millions of refugee s , including mainly women and children.
Among causes of the current situation, she cited the creation in 1994 of the corridor at the international community's instigation, resulting in the opening by the DRC, of borders in the eastern part of the country to save lives of neighbouring populations who left their countries ravaged by endogenous troubles.
This resulted in a mass movement of over one million people, including armed refugees, she added.
National democratic institutions and the international community have disparaged sexual abuse used as a weapon to terrorise Congolese women during wars in the e a stern part of the country.
"Congolese women as well as women from the Great Lakes region and all around Africa strengthen their position by organising a campaign tagged "I denounce and Ye s No," Lukiana said.
She cited some actions led by the government to considerably reduce all kinds of violence and discrimination against women and young girls.
Such actions included the gender national policy, the implementation of parity between men and women in the DRC, revitalization of national and provincial councils for women and family welfare and the creation of local grassroots committees f or the promotion of women, children and families.
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