The U.N. envoy on sexual violence in conflict Thursday voiced her disappointment that only two people were convicted of rape during the recent trial of 39 soldiers and officers charged with committing crimes in and around the town of Minova in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) two years ago. In the mass rape trial, which concluded May 5, the Operational Military Court in North Kivu condemned 26 members of the DRC armed forces (FARDC), including two for rape, one for murder, and most of the rest on more minor charges such as looting and disobedience. Fourteen officers were acquitted. Zainab Hawa Bangura, the secretary-general's special representative on sexual violence in conflict, expressed her disappointment at the verdict. "The Special Representative regrets that the verdict does not reflect the magnitude of the crimes of sexual violence that were committed and fails to do justice to all victims who had the courage to bring this case to court," a statement issued by Bangura's office said.
