Stand up for the Women of the Congo

Dear President Obama:

We thank you for your long-standing commitment to a comprehensive US policy regarding the tragedies continually unfolding in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We urge you to continue this support by taking immediate action to end the suffering of women and girls in eastern Congo.

Since 1996, eastern Congo has been the epicenter of the deadliest war since World War II, and it remains a place where combatants on all sides routinely use rape and sexual violence as a weapon to destroy women, families, and communities. We ask you to announce your administration’s initial plan to end the scourge of violence against women and girls in eastern Congo on International Women's Day on March 8, 2009, and then report back on your progress toward this goal one year later.

We ask you to embrace a comprehensive approach that does the following:

• Promoting Peace: Lead aggressive diplomatic efforts to forge an inclusive peace agreement between the Congolese government and rebel groups, press the governments of the Congo and Rwanda to abide by the commitments made in the Nairobi joint communiqué in November 2007; particularly to end negative propaganda against each other and to refrain from providing support to armed groups, [including the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP) and the Rwandan Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR);] and end the illegal exploitation of Congolese natural resources — a major driver of the conflict and violence.

• Protecting People: Ensure rapid deployment of the recently increased MONUC peacekeeping force. Ensure also that these peacekeepers aggressively patrol areas where women are most vulnerable, increase support for UN and charitable programs responding to sexual violence, and urge the new Congress to pass the International Violence Against Women Act when it is reintroduced in 2009.

• Punishing Perpetrators: Call for the International Criminal Court to open an investigation into rape as a war crime in eastern Congo, work with the Congolese government to increase rape prosecutions in Congolese courts, and aggressively enforce existing UN sanctions.

We urge your administration to take strong action to protect and empower Congolese women and girls and promote peace in eastern Congo. Thank you for your urgent attention to this continuing tragedy, and we look forward to your announcement on March 8, 2009.