New record: 10.000 Congolese attend the Mobile Cinema

Around 10.000 people gathered to watch a screening of ‘Fighting the Silence’ in Mulo village on the 21st of August 2011 in North Kivu, DRC.
The open-air film screening addressed sexual violence, by showing testimonies of women that were raped and the impact it has had on their lives. Most victims suffer from severe stigmatisation and are often rejected by their family members. To date, sexual violence continues to affect a large number of women and girls in Congo. It is therefore very encouraging to see that so many men, women and youth gather to debate about the ways in which they can change the way in which victims are treated and assisted in their communities. As a local leader in Mula expressed: “Please come back, we need to know more about violence against women. It has been a long time since we gathered to learn an talk about these issues. It really touched me”.

The Mobile Cinema project was launched in South Kivu province in September 2008. Since September 2010 screenings are also organised in North Kivu. Nearly a million Congolese have so far been reached. The project is an initiative of the Mobile Cinema Foundation, and is implemented by Search for Common Ground and Amnesty International. The project will at least be running until 2013.