We join FIDH and partners in sounding the alarm over the wave of sexual violence against women following mass prison escapes amid M23’s advancement into eastern DRC.

The horrific mass rapes and deaths of hundreds of women at Goma prison in February 2025 are not isolated incidents. 

They are part of a deeply entrenched pattern of sexual violence against women in prison settings. In September 2024, in Kinshasa, during a massive prison break, hundreds of detained women were raped by prisoners. In January 2020, in Lubumbashi, 50 detained women were raped for two days during riots at the Kasapa prison.

These crimes demand urgent international action. We call on the UN, including the OHCHR Fact-Finding Mission, to:

• Investigate sexual and gender-based violence in the context of prison escapes
• Strengthen monitoring of threats and reprisals by escaped war criminals
• Ensure protection for survivors, witnesses, and human rights defenders

Read the full statement: https://www.fidh.org/en/region/Africa/democratic-republic-of-congo/drc-mass-violence-against-women-during-prison-escapes-victims-of