Central African Republic

The Central African Republic (CAR) has suffered several periods of political instability and conflict since gaining independence in 1960, with the latest civil war erupting in 2012. The mainly Muslim Séléka armed groups alliance overthrew the President Bozizé in 2013. In response to the serious abuses against civilians at the hands of the Séléka, community-based Christian self-defence groups called Anti-Balaka (anti-bullet) were formed. The fighting between the two factions quickly spiralled into sectarian violence along religious and ethnic lines, with both groups targeting civilian communities as well. Over the years, both parties have fragmented into a multitude of factions and militias with competing and conflicting aims. Despite the signing of a Peace Agreement in 2019, conflicts still persist, with significant human rights violations and abuses against the civilian population.

Although these numbers are already horrific, sexual crimes have been systematically underreported, in particular because of the social stigma faced by survivors preventing them from speaking out about their experiences and accessing the care they need. Many are rejected by their families and communities, especially pregnant women. Nonetheless, survivors decided to break the silence and unite their voices in a movement to fight against sexual violence in their country and prevent new generations from facing the same atrocities.

The network supports and empowers victims of sexual violence in part through large-scale public events, including awareness raising sessions in all eight districts of Bangui on CRSV, its causes and consequences, a march for HIV-infected survivors. MOSUCA took part to conferences on the importance of including survivors in the peace process and transitional justice mechanisms in CAR, as well as numerous public statements MOSUCA also participates regularly in radio broadcasts alongside politicians, representatives of international organizations and civil society. MOSUCA is also part of GBV strategic committee of experts launched by the CAR government in 2022.

Furthermore, MOSUCA has been empowering survivors of sexual violence by distributing and explaining the content of relevant documents, such as the Political Agreement for Peace and Reconciliation in the Central African Republic of February 2019, and the UN Security Council Resolution 2467 (2019).

Service provision for survivors of sexual violence has been limited and, until recently, no project in CAR was providing multi-sectoral support using a holistic, survivor-centred approach. Since 2020 the Mukwege Foundation has participated in a consortium project – Nengo (meaning ‘dignity’ in Sango) – which aims to turn the tide of SGBV by providing quality holistic services to survivors and by contributing to initiatives to prevent its occurrence. Multi sectoral specialist services are offered via a one-stop-centre in Bangui, with multiple entry points for survivors of conflict related and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence. The project also conducts advocacy, sensitisation, and prevention activities with the aim of reducing the incidence of sexual and gender-based violence and the stigmatisation of survivors within their community.

In 2024, MOSUCA was awarded the Simone Veil Prize by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.