On 26 March 2013, the UK Foreign Secretary, William Hague, and Angelina Jolie met with the Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice and some of its DRC partners for a special screening of their gender justice film, Our Voices Matter, in Goma, Eastern DRC. In response to the film, UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie said: “We came to the DRC to highlight issues of sexual violence and you have made our work easier – the film says it all. It is often difficult for women to speak about these types of experiences and it is incredible that they trusted the organisation and your partners to tell their stories – the film was very moving. This is just the beginning of our collaboration on these issues.”

The UK Foreign Secretary, William Hague, congratulated the Women’s Initiatives on its work and said that “what you are doing to promote accountability for sexual violence is very important, and I am happy to announce funding for the Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice of GBP 850,000 (US$1.3 million) over the next three years to further support your work.”

“The priority being given to this issue by the UK government is helping to mobilise a strategic response to reduce the high levels of impunity for crimes of sexual violence common in situations of armed conflict such as in Eastern DRC,” said Brigid Inder, Executive Director of the Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice.

Read the full press release

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