AND the voice of the many voiceless, of the many girls and women who, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, have suffered and suffer wartime rape, abuse, extreme hardship. Julienne Lusenge, 67 years old, journalistlistened to their pain, going through, together with them, the potential for transformation. Today those girls and women are stronger and more resilient, many have become activists themselves, embodying proof that pain can also be transformed into the possibility of peace within a land of conflict.
For his tireless and courageous activism in their name, Julienne Lusenge has just won theUN SDG (Sustainable Development Goals) Action Awards 2025 in the category Changemaker (agent of change, ed), a United Nations recognition that celebrates those who work to build a more equal and peaceful world. She was awarded last month in Rome, in the eighth edition of the Heroes of Tomorrow ceremony: UN SDG Action Awards, a program of the UN SDG Action Campaign, a special initiative to promote the Sustainable Development Goals and rethink economies and societies so that they are at the service of people and the planet, starting by listening to communities in suffering. There were over five thousand nominations for the various awards, coming from 190 countries.
The extraordinary strength of mothers
«Being born a woman in the Democratic Republic of Congo means growing up amidst courage and constraints» she says Julienne Lusenge. «In many areas, especially in the eastern part of the country, risks and dangers weigh on our lives: going to the fields, to the market or to school can already expose us to violence, including rape used as a weapon of war by armed groups. But it also means addressing more silent inequalities: early marriage and pregnancies, unequal access to education, economic dependence, social norms that stifle women’s voices.”
«And yet, every day I see extraordinary strength: mothers who struggle to send their daughters to school, young people who create income-generating activities, survivors who, after a course of treatment, in turn become protagonists of change. My work starts from this conviction: the safety and dignity of women are non-negotiable and peace will only be lasting if they participate fully.”
Julienne Lusenge, 67, won the UN SDG Action Awards, a United Nations recognition for those who work to build a more equal and peaceful world (Photo by Victor Boyko/Getty Images for Aurora Humanitarian Initiative).
Julienne Lusenge, «Silence kills twice»
When new conflicts broke out in the eastern areas in 1999, Julienne worked in a humanitarian radio. He began to patrol the areas of conflict, gradually pushing towards increasingly remote villages: he met the inhabitants, collected testimonies of raids and violence committed by armed men. It didn’t take her long to document the abuse and rape that children and adults systematically suffered as the conflict worsened.
She told and denounced those violences publicly on the radiodemanding trials that would bring those responsible to justice. “I committed myself the day I understood that silence kills twice: first in the moment of violence, then when society demands that the victim be silent,” she says. «Meeting women destroyed by war but determined to get back on their feet, I understood that my place was at their side: to listen without judging, transform anger into action and open doors that seemed closed».
Repair and protect
A year after the first meetings, Julienne Lusenge founded together with some activists SofepadiSolidarité Féminine pour la Paix et le Développement Intégral, an organization that offers concrete and specialized help, starting with legal and judicial assistance: Sofepadi organizes mobile hearings in the villages where the rapes took place, maintains contact with the courts, monitors the trials, provides support in the execution of sentences, covering all expenses. «I start by listening to the communities to transform concrete needs into programs, then into demands» he explains.
His method goes in three directions. Repairing and protecting, he says, is the first thing the organization intervenes on: it means give, in addition to legal assistance, medical assistance, listening and support psychosocial to survivors, when emergency shelter is also needed, and create community protection, thanks to early warning networks, hotlines, safe spaces for girls and women. «At a later time, let’s act on the empowerment of survivorsfocusing on reintegration and economic independence: we provide professional training, we support entrepreneurship through loans and cooperatives, we guarantee assistance for access to land. And we encourage changing social norms, creating public campaigns against violence and early marriage, community radio, clubs for boys and husbands based on positive masculinity.”
After taking a course on soap making, some Congolese women sell their products at the market (Joyce Kipunga/Ffc).
Dialogue is crucial for peace
According to Lusenge, societies are only strong and resilient when women and girls are too. AND if it is true that women are the first victims of war, they alone hold the key to peace: It follows that encouraging their participation in political processes is crucial to building peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo. «Our third objective, in fact, is to influence policies, starting from the implementation of the UN Resolution 1325 (recognizes the impact of armed conflicts on women and their role in preventing and resolving conflicts and building peace), protecting anyone who defends human rights and fighting impunity. Dialogue is also crucial: we organize round tables with authorities, security forces, religious and traditional leaders with the aim of making them assume concrete commitments”.
An interdisciplinary team composed largely of women works with Lusengealongside which allied men act, engaged in legal issues, awareness-raising and security. She herself, traumatized by the atrocities experienced by the people she assisted, was threatened, followed, and had her home and office invaded. «These are moments when fear is real. I look it in the face, then I put it at the service of prudence: safety protocols, discreet movements, working in synergy, rapid alert, systematic documentation of accidents.”
Have you ever thought about giving up? «Yes, there are nights of anguish. But every time, a survivor who resumes her studies, a sentence obtained, a village that reconciles reminds me why we hold on. Family is my first source of strength. We talk a lot, we decide on security measures together. My children know that my fight aims to build a country where they will not have to be afraid. This doesn’t erase the sacrifices, but it gives them meaning.”
Julienne Lusenge discusses with a group of women how to strengthen their economic independence (Gad Muweza/Sofepadi).
Julienne Lusenge, awards and recognitions
Nominated last year by Time among the 100 most influential people in the world, through Sofepadi and Ffc, Fund for Congolese Women – the only feminist fund in the Democratic Republic of Congo that financially supports organizations led by women and which Julienne founded – has supported more than 7,500 survivors of gender violence, mobilized three million dollars in over 700 grants, supported more than 250 grassroots groups with female leadership. Heroes of Tomorrow: UN SDG Action Awards is the latest of very authoritative awards who recognized his extraordinary work.
«For me rewards are not an end, but a lever. First of all, they offer visibility for survivors: the media that talk about them become spaces in which their voices direct priorities. They then open the doors of political decision makers to us to negotiate concrete commitments. In the end, guarantee resourcesas they strengthen credibility with those who support us financially.”
He continues to say: «In such an unstable context nothing is linear, but I see progress. First of all, better coordinated treatment paths: today, in several areas a survivor can receive medical, psychosocial and legal assistance without having to wander for months. Community mobilization: more zero tolerance towards gender violence in villages where yesterday there was silence. More frequent convictions. And then a greater number of women are part of local peace committees, school committees and cooperatives. This progress remains fragile, especially when fighting resumes. But they demonstrate that sustained, local, political action bears fruit.”
Smiling again: Amina’s story
She is keen to close with the story of one of the many women who rewrote her future. «I’ll call her Amina. Kidnapped while going to the market, she suffered repeated violence. When she came to us, she barely spoke. After medical treatment, he followed a psychosocial support course, then training to manage a small commercial business. He regained control of his life.”
«One day she told me: “I’m no longer just a survivor. I’m a point of reference for other women”. Today Amina runs a savings and dialogue group between men and women in her neighborhood. His laughter has become a language that everyone understands.”