United Nations, Aug 01: The United Nations investigators have accused warring factions in Democratic Republic of Congo of indulging in most gruesome acts including cannibalism, systematic killings, rape and loot late last year and early this year. A report released yesterday said investigators noted acts of cannibalism and tactics to force family members to eat parts of their loved one.
That could be considered part of a policy of psychological torture and was mainly conducted against the Nande and Pygmy populations, it claimed. The report was complied by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights after an investigation team visited Mambasa in eastern Congo and heard testimony indicating a pattern of looting, killing and violence against women by armed factions during the fighting.
The fighters, the report alleges, raped women and girls, some as young as ten, in front of their family members. They also abducted women, confined them for several days as sexual slaves at a time.
In all the team interviewed 368 people - victims and witnesses alike. Bureau Report