48 women raped every hour in Congo

48 women raped every hour in Congo

The African nation of Congo has been called the worst place on earth for women.

A study has found that some 1,152 women are raped every day, which is equivalent to 48 per hour.

The findings were obtained through face-to-face interviews with the victims.

Michelle Hindin, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the number could be higher.

Congo, a nation of 70 million people that is equal in size to Western Europe, has been plagued by decades of war.

Its vast forests are rife with militias that have systematically used rape to destroy communities.

The analysis, which will be published in the American Journal of Public Health in June, shows that more than 400,000 women had been raped in Congo in a 12-month period between 2006 and 2007.

On average 29 Congolese women out of every 1,000 had been raped nationwide.

The highest frequency of rape was found in North Kivu - the province most affected by the conflict- where 67 women per 1,000 had been raped at least once.
Source: China Daily / Agencies

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