Laurel Marks, a senior at Nevada Union High School, will be screening the 2008 Sundance Special Jury Prize documentary ,“The Greatest Silence: Rape In The Congo,” on Sunday, April 26, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., at the Unitarian Universalist Community of the Mountains, 246 S. Church St., Grass Valley.

All proceeds of this screening will be donated to the women in the Congo through the nonprofit Women to Women International.

Call (530) 274-1547 with any questions or for more information.

Below is Laurel's essay about the situation in the central African nation.

Conflict in the Congo

The history of The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of bloody conflict, cold hatred, and passionate greed.

In the past ten years factions such as the Kinshasa, Hutu, and Uganda have violently ripped the Congo apart. (Second Congo War) Although the war in the Congo has come to an “official” end, in 2006 UNICEF declared “1,200 people are killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo every day because of violence, disease or malnutrition…”

Half of these casualties are children, and each year an estimated 45,000 women are raped. UNICEF also reported: “around four million people have been killed in the almost decade-long conflict in the DRC, making it the world’s deadliest, humanitarian crisis, but despite the scale of the suffering it has not received the media attention it deserves (600 Children Die in Congo Every Day).”

“By 2008 the war and its aftermath had killed 5.4 million people, mostly from disease and starvation, making the Second Congo War the deadliest conflict worldwide since World War II (Second Congo War).”

The United Sates and Asia use many of the resources that are being fought over in the Congo such as copper (which is used in electronics and buildings), diamonds, and much more.

No matter how much the truth may hurt, we must realize that this is the story of a trail of blood that leads directly to our mobile phones, our remote controls, our laptops, our necklaces, our wedding rings, and our eyes that are blind to the suffering of the Congolese people. In this greed-drenched war for power, metal and land, no one can escape blame.

Yet for centuries, Africa also has been a land of redemption and hope, its heart still beats out a story of bravery, tremendous courage and strength.

In July 2003 the “Great War of Africa” officially ended. Slowly the countless victims of this brutal war are rising from the battle fields with the help of nonprofits such as Raise Hope For Congo, Women for Women International, the EcoMom Alliance, and many others.

Playwright Eve Ensler has launched "Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource, Power To The Women And Girls Of The Democratic Republic Of Congo," while Lynn Nottage has written a play about women in the Congo.

"The Greatest Silence: Rape In The Congo," a documentary shot in the war zones of the DRC by Lisa Jackson, exposes the horrors of this brutal war and breaks the silence of the “tens of thousands of women and girls [who] have been systematically kidnapped, raped, mutilated and tortured by soldiers — both from foreign militias and the Congolese army that is supposed to protect them (The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo).” The film delves into the psychological dark roots of this 10-year war.

Sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo affects not only the women and girls, but also tears apart families and communities.

The film has been screened in dozens of countries, including the Human Rights Watch 2008 International Film Festival in New York City, and many are hopeful that the film will provide greater understanding of the war in the international community.

Around the world people are providing support and hope for the victims of this brutal war, and advocating for change in the Congo. Around the world people are raising money, awareness, and, most importantly, their voices.

And the greatest silence will finally be broken.

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