Am I Not Human: Rape Assaults Both Genders In The Congo

The tools of war escape the imagining of the average American citizen, but it's a very real threat for our human siblings in many areas of the world, where communities of innocents are under siege as their land is ravaged by militias that are funded by Western, and other Imperialist powers for their resources.

In addition to murdering, and separating people from their families, rape has become an inhumanly frequent matter of international news. In the Congo in particular, an area rich in the Coltan our wireless devices are dependent upon, women have known the threat of rapists bearing arms [with the Eastern Congo considered by the UN the rape capital of the world], but until recently men have either remained quiet about their experiences being raped by other men, or the phenomena has only recently become a reality for them in recent months, with what some consider hundreds of recent cases.

Though I had heard of this in passing, [I haven't spent a tremendous amount of time on the net over this particular Summer season] a recent Kameelahwrites blog post focusing on this crime's new, or newly-revealed face alerted me of the need to be a part of spreading this message, because without knowledge of the horrors our human siblings are experiencing in other parts of the world, we're in danger of fooling ourselves into thinking these issues aren't relevant, or even there. We're in danger of feeling these evils can't touch us, though they are touching our sisters and brothers in ways nothing should ever touch an individual or community.

What is most troubling to me about these evils is the underhanded networking that pulls the strings of these militias, and the way these militias [in alot of cases from the use of drugs- often for child soldiers] are able to distance themselves from their own people and rain unjust horrors down upon them.
It is certain the evils that have plagued Rwanda, The Uganda, The Congo and Darfur, to name only a few, are not in the true control of roaming militias.
The "intelligence" goes far deeper than that, into the direct pockets of those benefiting from the accumulation of resources gathered after the depopulation of the lands that are targeted. It's not a new tactic, and this is what is most upsetting. When and indeed what measure can we take as universal citizens to ensure safety, and basic resources be available to everyone? How do we disconnect the many heads of the greed-feeding network that ravages the human family with soulless regard, and exact strategy?

At present, I say we continue to spread the word. Bring it up at mealtime. Ignore the vibes others may give that it's somehow 'a drag'. Appeal to the selfishness in the community by raising the simple point that these kinds of crimes will eventually be able to strike anywhere. Without strong moves made by the ICC at least, to punish war criminals, who will care if evils that have become all too familiar to lands we may consider far away from us now, come to ours in full-bloom?

We can't afford, for the sake of humanity itself, or for our own personal lives, to pretend we're powerless. That kind of passive response to greed-mongering savagery has only empowered it. I say we at least have to be willing to speak on behalf of those suffering, and share what we can [within reason of course, as we're all struggling to survive] to aid those being stolen from and treated as less than human, or animal for that matter.

On behalf of our human siblings in the Congo [and everywhere else humanity is assaulted by inhumanity] we ask: