Women are the first victims of war, but we hold the key to peace

Julienne Lusenge is a community leader and human rights defender who has fought for women's and girl’s rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for over 40 years. Lusenge leads the Female Solidarity for Integrated Peace and Development (SOFEPADI), an organization that provides holistic support to survivors of sexual violence and the Congolese Women's Fund (FFC), which focuses on providing financial and technical support to grassroots organizations working on women's leadership in peacebuilding and political participation, sexual reproductive health, the fight against sexual violence, and climate justice. Her courage and activism have shined a light on the plight of Congolese women who have suffered sexual violence in war-ravaged eastern DRC, empowering survivors to rebuild their lives. A 2023 UN Human Rights Prize winner and a Board Member of the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture, Lusenge was named this week one of TIME magazine's most influential people in the world in 2024.

What inspired you to empower survivors of sexual violence and help them rebuild their lives?

I grew up in a family that allowed me to express myself and I had a lot of discussions with my father. When I started working as a radio journalist, I went to the villages and met many women who did not have the right to speak. They wanted to express themselves, they wanted to flourish, but they were not allowed. When we created SOFEPADI in 2000 we were in the middle of an inter-ethnic war in Ituri, so it was important that women could contribute to building peace and also receive services as survivors. There were women who told us “I was also a survivor of sexual violence, in addition to being chased out of my village.” I said to myself: We have to do something for these women, we have to raise their voices so that they can have access to justice.

A lot of women who come to our services are completely destroyed. They no longer have a smile. They no longer have hope. But when we support them, they manage to get back to life and even mobilize other women to denounce cases of sexual violence. When I see children born from rape ending primary and secondary school, and mothers finishing university and becoming activists themselves, all this encourages us to keep going forward. I don’t want my grandchildren to grow up in a country where all women are at risk of sexual violence. I want to have a country where women can be safe and enjoy their rights as men.

You have dedicated your life as an activist to strengthening women's participation and leadership in peacebuilding. Why do you think this is important?

Women are the first victims of sexual violence, but we hold the key to peace. We want to be at the table in the interest of the community. This is what pushes us to engage in peace processes, to give our voice and say what is needed for a lasting peace: water, electricity or schools for children. Recently, I visited displaced populations in Goma with a delegation from the African Union. The women came forward and said that their first priority was that children go to school. They know that without studies children can be easily recruited by armed groups.

During the inter-ethnic war in eastern Congo, an outcry mobilized women. We created the Forum of Mothers of Ituri and women came from all walks of life to meet and talk about peace. In the villages, women asked the leaders why they were being sidelined. Men answered that it was because there was a war and it was dangerous. That is all nice talking, but when the militias came to the villages it was men who hid, while we stayed. It was us who helped stop the violence. We talked to the militias to end the violence, and afterwards the men showed up from the places where they were hiding.

Women carry the women, peace and security agenda so it is important that competent and experienced women participate at the political level. We also need more women mediators in all peace processes. The Congolese Women’s Fund provides the means to train women, so that they can do their job well. Today, these women are traditional judges, village chiefs, market chiefs and district chiefs. They manage the villages very well and people trust them.

What are the main human rights challenges facing DRC today?

Our country is facing a war that has lasted for more than 30 years. This war is maintained by neighbouring countries because of our resources, with armed groups going into the villages to occupy the mines and chase away the populations. Today our country has 7 million displaced people living in inhumane conditions. These people don't have anything to eat nor a roof to sleep under, despite all the protocols, non-aggression conventions, international documents and instruments that exist. It's a war that has been forgotten for years.

We are also witnessing a regression of rights and democracy. My mother fed us and paid for our studies with the money she made working in the fields, but today this is not possible. Now we are seeing the exploitation of women because of the conditions in which they are put by war. Little girls are forced to resort to prostitution to find means to survive. It is time that we look at concrete action plans to show the Congolese that human rights exist. The international community and the United Nations must reformulate how they work. We have a lot of resolutions. We do not need more resolutions; we need the implementation of these resolutions so that we can feel they protects us and promote human rights and democracy.

As a Board Member of the UN Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture, what are your priorities?

I want the Fund to be able to better take care of and support victims of sexual violence and victims of all kinds of gender-based violence. The Fund's specialty is reaching the vulnerable, wherever the survivors are. Human rights are going backwards in several countries, so it is important that the Fund is really replenished and that there are more resources to support survivors with mental health services. The person who goes through these difficult experiences is not the same person who comes back. We need to provide them with mental health support and see the family around them so that everyone is cared for to try to restore the atmosphere that was there.

At one point in my life, I myself was traumatized. I sometimes would become violent and angry at home over nothing, or I cried all the time because of the images that came to me. The women’s testimonies came back to me. I didn't understand how a human being could do that to another human being. Fortunately, a foundation in Geneva helped me and I was treated.

Are you optimistic about the future?

We always have hope. After the fog there will always be sunshine. There is a decline in human rights and budget cuts for humanitarian actions and the promotion of rights. But we tell ourselves we are not going to be discouraged. It is important that we mobilize even more in the promotion of rights, especially in the fight against sexual violence and gender-based violence. We must take action, not just talk at conferences, but take action every day to put an end to sexual or sexist violence and discrimination against all people.