‘Breaking the Silence’

This slam was written by survivors of the national network Mouvement des Survivant.e.s de Centrafrique (MOSUCA) and Collectif National des Victimes de Centrafrique (CNAV-CA) during a music workshop that enabled survivors to express themselves and speak about sexual violence to Central African society. The message of the slam that was recorded by the survivors was: “It is time to break definitively the silence because we are called women to save souls.” These lyrics were composed by the survivors with the support of the local artist Gad Noutouss, laureate of the best slammer in Central Africa.

Survivors reported the positive impacts of this project, including improving their self-esteem and helping them uncover ‘hidden artistic talents’ and new avenues to process their trauma and express their emotions.

This artwork was featured in the 2023 SEMA Collective Memory Exhibition ‘We Are Speaking, Are You Listening?’ in Nairobi, Kenya.