Congo's Dr Denis Mukwege & Charlize Theron Honored As TIME 100 Most Influential People

Anne of Carversville has long followed the work of Congolese gynaecologist and human rights activist Dr. Denis Mukwege. Since 1999, the esteemed doctor has performed surgery on over 40,000 girls and women who have been the victims of sexual violence. 

Dr. Mukwege's latest honor was being named to the list of TIME 100 2016 Most Influential People. His tribute was written by Dr. Jill Biden, who first met Dr. Denis Mukwege at his Panzi Hospital in Bukavu. Dr. Biden writes:

With a towering presence, a disarming smile and a soft, soothing voice, he is a source of strength and sanctuary in a land of violence and despair—a forgotten war. The son of a Pentecostal pastor, he is guided by the Hippocratic oath and an indomitable commitment to justice on his own mission to save these communities one woman at a time.

What Dr. Mukwege and his team at Panzi Hospital do is extraordinary. Theirs is a reality where 48 women in the DRC are raped every hour, according to a 2011 report. They have treated more than 46,000 victims of sexual- and gender-based violence—6-year-olds and octogenarians alike. Beyond healer to these women and girls, Dr. Mukwege is hope.

Dr Denis Mukwege & Charlize Theron

Dr. Mukwege crossed our AOC path for the first time when Charlize Theron was introduced to Panzi Hospital in her role as a United Nations Messenger of Peace. Charlize was also honored on the TIME 100 list, honored by Blake Mycoskie, founder of Toms Shoes, a brand known for donating a pair of shoes when you buy one.  In 2015 Toms Shoes launched an exciting campaign to donate up to a million pair of shoes with an Instagram snap of pretty -- or not so pretty -- feet. 

In his words about Charlize, he called her a Straight talker on HIV prevention. 

A lot of celebrities know how to raise awareness. Charlize Theron is different. First, she is deeply, deeply involved in the actual work of her foundation, the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project; for the past nine years she has spent a lot of time in southern Africa with young people, helping them protect themselves from HIV. Second, she’s incredibly results-oriented and knows her programs really well. And third—and this is what makes her particularly effective with people who can make stuff happen—she’s not afraid to say what’s on her mind. I’ve never met anyone who holds less back. That means people trust her, which helps spread her influence. We’ve been giving kids shoes for 10 years at Toms, and what we’ve found is that making kids feel special is just as important as putting shoes on their feet. Charlize’s work is the same: the work she’s doing is important, but the way she goes about it, by building kids’ self-esteem, is just as valuable.

Dr Denis Mukwege Seeks Reforms In Congo's Army

I last wrote about Dr. Mukwege in June 2015, after learning about his receiving the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2014. In a speech that week, the brave humanitarian, who survived a 2012 assassination attempt, in which his driver was murdered, described the Congolese army as being mired in a culture of violence and as being 'completely sick'. His recommendation was that the existing Congolese army should be disarmed and replaced with new recruits who have no record of sexual violence and have never fought for a violent militia. 

The breath of Dr. Mukwege's thinking, bravery and experience earned him major backing for the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize, which was ultimately awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet. 

Dr Denis Mukwege & Eve Ensler

In December 2006, Vagina Monologues playwright Eve Ensler's life changed dramatically when she interviewed Dr. Denis Mukwege in December 2006. Eve traveled to Bukavu and Goma to visit the Panzi Hospital and also the HEAL Africa Hospital in May 2007. The scale of violence perpetrated against women living in the Congo was horrific, and Eve was moved to action.

In partnership with women survivors, Christine Schuler-Deschryver, and Unicef, V-Day (Eve's activist organization) initiated a Congo campaign, with the main goal of creating the City of Joy, a place conceived by the survivors as a place of rehabilitation, healing and skill creation. Developed by women on the ground in partnership with V-Day and the Panzi Fondation (DRC), the construction of the City of Joy started in September 2009. Doors opened in June 2011. AOC celebrated the forceful joining of Dr. Mukwege and Ensler in this new start for women in the Congo. 

Below are V-Day Founder Eve Ensler, the Governor of South Kivy, and W-Day Congo Director/Director of City of Joy Christine Schuler-Deschryver at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the City of Joy. 

Hillary Clinton Honors Dr Mukwege at Georgetown University

2016 US Democratic party presidential candidate Hillary Clinton also reveres the work of Dr Denis Mukwege. Most people don't know that before Hillary left her role as Secretary of State, she founded -- with her inaugural US Ambassador for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verveer and Georgetown President John J. DeGioia -- the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security. The Institute is also home to the International Council on Women's Business Leadership, which is a part of the Women & Economy Project launched in October 2014. 

In 2014, GIWPS honored Dr Mukwege for his work at Panzi Hospital and on behalf of women living in the Congo. There is no doubt that Hillary was highly impacted listening to the stories of their sexual assaults that they shared with Hillary when she visited the women as Secretary of State. 

We share our archived past stories over the years on this critical, global topic of violence against women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.