Panzi

Democratic Republic of Congo

For fifteen years rape has been a weapon of war, The body of women a battlefield. Armed gangs destroy populations To better exploit the mineral wealth of the Kivu, like coltan, gold, diamonds. Those Who do not flee submit to the executioners. Here, they are violating and pillaging, in silence. More and more of these sexual crimes, Extreme violence, are perpetrated on girls, on babies. Targeted attacks to wipe out the Fertility of future mothers, sacred gift of black Africa. In Bukavu, in the hospital of Panzi, the doctor Denis Mukwege, Obstetrician Gynecologist, repairs The mutilated bodies of the victims. And saves their lives. Sometimes rejected by their husbands, pregnant with their Attackers, they start a new existence. More than a hospital, Panzi is a refuge, A village for those survivors who recover Standing alongside social workers, psychologists. They also cure by Speech, song, prayer. Together. Dr. Denis Mukwege, Sakharov Prize 2014 For freedom of thought, claims that an International Criminal Court considers these crimes against humanity. Target of several attacks, he lives Now reclusive in his hospital, behind Barbed wire, protected by armed guards. More than 40,000 women were “Reconstructed ” in Panzi.