11.10.10 ITUC: World March of Women in Bukavu – Massive Trade Union Mobilisation to End Violence Against Women

During its latest World Congress in Vancouver in June of this year,
the ITUC reaffirmed its priority to combat all types of violence
obstructing women's rights to participate fully in society. Women in
eastern DR Congo in particular are victims of extreme violence
perpetrated on a massive scale. For over ten years, rape and sexual
violence have been systematically used in the region as a weapon of war,
to spread fear, and as a method of ethnic cleansing. The ITUC has
repeatedly condemned the fact that in spite of successive high-level
missions and reports, the extreme violence against women has continued
to grow over the years, as the Congolese and international authorities
regrettably stand by, powerless to tackle the problem.

Women members of the Congolese unions, the CDT, CSC and UNTC,
together with other civil society groups in DR Congo, have for several
years been involved in a broad campaign to combat violence against
women.

The women trade unionists gathering in Bukavu to take part in the WMW
activities will also participate in a trade union conference on 14 and
15 October. The aim of the conference is to strengthen women's
participation in social dialogue as a key tool in conflict prevention
and resolution and especially as a means of protecting women victims of
war.

Alongside its participation in the WMW activities, the Congolese
trade union movement is also holding, on 11 and 13 October, a tripartite
seminar on the role of trade unions in contributing to peace in the
Great Lakes region through social dialogue, with the support and
involvement of the international trade union movement as well as a
number of Belgian (CGSLB-CSC-FGTB) and Swedish (LO-TCO) trade union
centres.

Representatives of the Congolese government, the ILO and UNIFEM will also take part in these two trade union activities.

"There is an urgent need to consolidate peace in eastern DR Congo.
The only way to achieve this is to tackle every aspect of the conflict,
including the illegal exploitation of natural resources, the many
shortfalls in terms of governance, the endemic poverty and the lack of
decent work opportunities for men and women. Social dialogue is a key
factor in securing peace and bringing an end to the intolerable acts of
violence committed against women," said Sharan Burrow.

Copyright © 2010 International Trade Union Confederation.