Between February 12th and 19th, 2014, a temporary courtroom was set up in Minova town, South Kivu province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to hear the testimonies of resident rape victims. The number of soldiers on trial and level of military tribunal held made this the most significant rape trial to date in DRC, a country dubbed “the rape capital of the world” by the UN. On trial were 39 government soldiers accused of partaking in a 10-day run of violence in November 2012, after fleeing from rebels of the March 23 Movement, who had captured the key city of Goma at the time. During those ten days, over 1000 people were raped in Minova alone. Congolese culture places heavy stigma on rape victims, so disguises were used at the trial to protect victims’ identities. Even so, only 47 women testified. A ruling on May 5th, 2014, found only two soldiers guilty of rape.
