Oct 07, 2015 Denis Mukwege, a Congolese Gynaecologist was recently announced as a frontrunner for the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize. Mukwege, whose work with rape victims earned him the Sakharov Prize in 2014.
Mukwege is the founder of Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, where physical and emotional treatments are offered to rape victims. In 2012, some armed men made an attempt on Mukwege’s life, forcing him to flee the country.
He however returned in 2013 to continue his work. Speaking at a One Billion Rising for Justice Event in 2013, he said:
“We are not going to allow people who want to make our lives difficult, and make our lives unbearable to the point where we can no longer claim our rights. We will not be intimidated. Men and women need to unite today and stand up against rape and war,”
In May 2011 Mukwege received the King Baudoin International Development Prize, during which he described the severity of the attacks on his patients.
“All the victims have been raped with unbelievable brutality. Those who manage to survive reach the hospital in a state of incredible physical and psychological destruction. Often they arrive with the genital system destroyed by bullets or sharp objects, an act of savagery unheard before in the history of the region,”