As the sun sets, Julie* is sitting on the streets and is selling bananas and corn to people that pass by on bicycles. Beside her, in the shadow, her three years old son Emile* is constructing a tower with small stones. Julie plants the corn by herself in the garden of her parents. She still lives with them and her son Emile. But deep inside, the Congolese woman once had different dreams: she wanted to finish school, study and have a family of her own. "But life is rarely a dream", she says.

Three years before Julie was raped for the first time, in broad daylight, on the way to Mahagi in the east of DR Congo, on the way back to her home village, which is several kilometres away. An unknown man was following her. When nobody was around on the streets any longer he pulled her into the bushes. Nobody heard her cries for help.

Two months later she realized that she was pregnant. So she had to tell her parents and explain her pregnancy. "It was a terrible blow for them. Not only because such a thing happened to me, but also for the shame that I had brought to the family: made pregnant by a man whose name I didn't even know? My father went completely mad, my mother was in despair." Even now, Julie is still not able to speak with her parents about her feelings. At least she is allowed to stay at home. But where would she have gone - without money and education? When she became pregnant, she needed to leave school and never continued with it. "I need to take care of my son and to ensure our survival."

Rapes are still a part of daily life in Congo. Most of the offenders are former soldiers and rebels. In most of the cases they are not caught and are rarely adequately punished. But the affected women and girls - and more frequently also boys - are suffering through the discrimination of a society. Up until now sexual violence has been a taboo subject in the DR Congo. Their society often judges and isolates the victims, because they still believe that victims either wanted or provoked their attack. Due to this way of thinking many men leave their wives.

Many victims of rape need medical and emotional support and because of this Malteser International has a project to care for the affected girls and women. Its main focus is the prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases like Hepatitis or HIV/AIDS. Furthermore, the organisation collaborates with local partners that take care of the necessary psychological support. Since the beginning of the project in 2005, Malteser International has treated almost 7,000 women. The true figures are far higher. "Often I go home after work and can't forget what I have heard and seen all day long", tells the attending doctor in the health centre of Mahagi. "The most terrifying thing is that the victims are getting younger. More and more we are seeing children aged five or six. I then imagine my own children and ask myself if it could happen to them. Who is doing such things like that? Absolutely horrible. Every month I have to treat 300 to 400 cases."

Julie has found herself yet again under the care of the medical centre, having been raped again last year. It happened again during broad daylight, and again on her way back to her village. Even today, twelve months later, she has serious injuries over her whole body and needs to take medicines. "I am very happy that I get treatment for free in the health centre", she says. "And that I have somebody with whom I can talk about what happened. Furthermore Malteser International gave me a bicycle. With this I can get to the health centre a lot quicker and I am not so afraid of the going home alone."

It is late afternoon. Julie has sold all the bananas and is packing her things together, ready for going home with Emile. Children and teenagers are crossing her way. She looks at them with a wistful expression in her eyes. "Maybe one day I can go back to school. This is my dream."

Kathrin Meier

* Names changed.