Nearly 60 prisoners are on trial for raping numerous women during an escape attempt in the DRC

September 13 (EUROPA PRESS) –

Around 60 people are on trial in a court in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for allegedly taking part in rapes during an attempted escape from one of the country’s main prisons in the capital Kinshasa, incidents that left more than 130 people dead.

According to information gathered by the Congolese news portal Actualité, a total of 64 inmates are accused of rape, terrorism and arson in connection with the incidents that took place in the early hours of 2 September.

The military court has requested that medical experts from the United Nations Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) and a military hospital take charge of the dozens of victims of these rapes, some of whom were minors.

One of the defense lawyers, Stanislas Mwamba, stressed that “all the victims present here are automatically constituted as civil parties,” before adding that all of them could be compensated by the State “in view of the damage they have suffered.”

A total of four minors who were victims of rape have recently appeared to describe the incidents. One of them explained that they were surprised “while they were sleeping.” “We heard the crackle of bullets and noticed that they were forcing open the door,” she said.

“The men managed to gain access. I was hiding in the shower, but one of them saw me, pulled me out of the shower, showed me a knife and threatened to kill me if I continued to scream,” she said. “He cut off my underwear, three other people came and took turns raping me,” she said, a story similar to that given by other victims.

Congolese Interior Minister Jacquemain Shabani, who is also deputy prime minister, said after the escape attempt that 24 people had been shot dead, while “the rest of the victims died from being crushed or suffocated.” He also confirmed cases of rape during the incidents and promised that the authorities would carry out an investigation.