A girl named hope
By Eddy Mbuyi, World Vision Senior Communications Officer in Eastern DRC
"I grew up in Beni, eastern DRC. Conflict has been my daily reality since I was young. When a local activist came to town speaking against sexual violence, he made me realize I too could make a difference in my own community."
The poised young woman sat in front of me is Esperance, a young Congolese activist from Beni in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The Democratic Republic of Congo, particularly the eastern part of the country, has experienced over two long decades of violence. Armed groups roam the region and prey on villagers. In Beni, in particular, one armed group has killed some 400 civilians since November 2014. The people here face extreme poverty, sexual violence, and constant abuse from both militias and the national security forces.
Esperance works with local communities in Beni to combat sexual and gender based violence, with a particular focus on banning child prostitution.
She sets her jaw as she describes her own experiences. "In my hometown, brothel owners recruit young children to work as waiters, but then argue that they must bring in more money by sleeping with customers. Three of my friends became prostitutes this way."
Esperance got started with local advocacy though our child parliaments, where she taught other children about their rights. When she turned eighteen, she started her own programme, called 'One Girl, One Leader' aimed at empowering the other young women in her community.
"I love my work, because it addresses root causes of chronic issues in our villagers. Young people have been on the frontline of this conflict for over twenty years, and we can offer new solutions with our fresh perspective.”
Esperance's work with One Girl, One Child enabled her to travel to London last summer for The Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict. At the conference Esperance represented her peers in the DRC and shared ideas with other activists from around the world. "It was so important to meet other people experiencing the same challenges as me," Esperance remembers.
Despite the highs of the summit, Esperance returned home to the same difficulties. "Standing up and fighting for what you believe in can be scary. I am living in an uncertain environment and having an opinion makes me a potential victim." Esperance calmly explains that fear isn’t going to stop her, though. "I truly believe in what I am doing, and that I can make a difference. I help authorities understand that they are legally required to enforce the rights of the child and ban child prostitution." Following her most recent training with World Vision, Esperance is planning to help other youth organizations launch a campaign combating sexual abuse against children.
A decade of conflict in the Eastern DRC, has killed millions and devastated the lives of many through violence, disease and poverty. Close to one million people remain internally displaced, and we are responding through projects like water and sanitation, health and nutrition, food security, HIV and AIDS, and advocacy. We are also working on protection issues, through programmes like those that have inspired Esperance. You can help support this work by giving to Raw Hope here.