The DRC, and the east of the DRC in particular, has been described as the "Rape Capital of the World".[2][3] The prevalence and intensity of all forms of sexual violence has been described as the worst in the world.[4][3]
Much of the research conducted about sexual violence in the DRC has focused on violence against and rape of women as related to these armed conflict, mostly occurring in the eastern region of the country.[5] The eastern region of the DRC has the highest rates of sexual violence, and much of it is perpetrated by armed militia groups.[6] However, other studies have begun to show that sexual violence is pervasive in all parts of the DRC and that it is not always related to the conflict.[6]
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is a source and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced labor and forced prostitution. The majority of this trafficking is internal, and much of it is perpetrated by armed groups and government forces outside government control within the DRC's unstable eastern provinces.[7]
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