GENEVA, Switzerland, Nov. 2 (UPI) -- Sexual violence like that in the Congo is a war crime and requires a sea change in the role women play in reconstruction, the ICRC said.
A U.N. human rights team found that more than 300 civilians were raped in the Congo by militants July 30-Aug. 2.
The rapes were allegedly carried out by members of the Congolese Mai Mai militia and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda.
Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, said sexual violence was overlooked in the Ivory Coast as the country focused its attention on preparations for presidential elections.
The International Committee for the Red Cross warned that sexual violence shouldn't take a back seat to broader reconciliation measures and political reform.
"Women must be fully involved in the search for solutions to their problems if those solutions are to have any chance of success," the ICRC said in a statement.
Margot Wallstrom, the U.N. special envoy on sexual violence in conflict, said in October that sexual violence against women isn't just a gender issue.
"Women must be fully involved in the search for solutions to their problems if those solutions are to have any chance of success," the ICRC added.
