Over 40,000 women and girls are estimated to have been raped in the conflict ridden zone of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And while most Brandeis students pride themselves on being worldly, there are many who remain ignorant of important issues like the atrocities that are occurring in the DRC.On Thursday, Oct. 30, filmmaker Lisa Jackson held the Boston premiere of her documentary The Greatest Silence: Rape in the Congo in the Wasserman Cinematheque in the Sachar International Center. The documentary has gained much acclaim since it took the Special Jury Prize in Documentary at the Sundance Festival in 2008, which is given to only one documentary film. In addition, on April 8, 2008, the documentary premiered on HBO. The movie will also be shown in the DRC this year and will reach millions of Congolese viewers.

Jackson prefaced the showing of her film by saying, "You know that things are bad when The New York Times features the DRC two days in a row."

While her film does not focus on the current fighting occurring in the country, war is still a constant presence throughout the film as it chronicles Jackson's journey to southern DRC to document the stories of rape victims. The documentary was originally intended to be a smaller segment in a film on modern conflicts viewed through the lens of gender; however, once she began the process of interviewing rape survivors, Jackson found that the subject required a full-length film. Jackson covers many aspects of the situation, encompassing a broad range of topics as she interviews rape survivors, sex slaves, the doctors who treat them, the United Nations soldiers who are supposed to protect them and even rapists themselves.

Jackson brings a unique perspective to the story. As a survivor of a gang rape that occurred while she was in her mid 20s, Jackson was able to share her own story and encourage the women in the film to tell their own. All of the stories are extremely disturbing, and a few drew audible gasps of shock from the audience. However, as Jackson points out in her film, there is no pleasant way to talk about the situation. The reality of these women's lives, while unimaginable to those of us who live in the Western world, is only becoming more commonplace in the DRC. The women in the film explained that they are often subject to lifelong health issues like HIV. And while there are now groups where women can live together and share their stories with one another, some of the women in the film explained that they are not happy and did not want to have the children who were the result of pregnancies induced by the rape. Jackson also explained how children born into communities ridden with rape are surrounded by shame and violence for much of their life. In this way, a cycle is created, in which it is hard for them to beget peace.

"Why is this happening? Why use sex in order to humiliate and defeat someone? To threaten someone so they flee their village? Why use sex?" asked the Congolese doctor who worked at a clinic for women who have fallen victim to sexual violence.

A civil war has been being waged in the DRC since the late '90s, with rebel forces continuously fighting each other. And while there is a U.N. peacekeeping force in place, it is difficult to patrol most of the jungle where the soldiers have hidden themselves, though a portion of the film does document these seemingly futile sweeps by the Pakistani peacekeeping force. Jackson even interviewed the U.N. general in charge of the operations in the DRC, who appeared uncomfortable talking about the experiences of these women.

The continuous rape of women is a direct result of the fighting. In the film, soldiers expressed their beliefs that raping women helped them to gain strength and overcome the enemy. Others claim that they have been alone in the jungle without women for too long, and if a woman denies them they have no choice but to take her by force. Most of the soldiers unabashedly admitted to raping women, and in one case, a soldier had said that he lost track of how many rapes he had committed after 25 women. All of the fighting units use rape and sexual violence as a method of destabilization and disenfranchisement.

"If she resists, I must take her by force, and if she is strong, I'll call some friends to help me," one of the Congolese soldiers tells Jackson as he shields his face from the camera.

There are a few organizations featured in the film that are trying to help the survivors of rape and their families-necessary establishments considering the fact that many women are disowned by their families after they are raped.

Organizations like Women to Women International teach these women skills in order to help them make a living. There are also two hospitals that treat survivors free of charge, but many women do not have access to the hospitals, and of those who do, injuries are sometimes so severe that they have to stay there for up to a year. Sister Clotilde, a nun in one of the villages shown, holds a weekly support group; with a donation of $600, she recently bought five acres of land and built a soap factory and homes for displaced women.

One of the most inspiring people featured in the film is Major Mungale, the one-woman Special Victims Unit. Major Mungale, a single mother of four children, works tirelessly to help victims of sexual violence and abused children in southern Kivu. Using an old typewriter in her office-a shack without a door-she writes down these women's stories and tries to bring them justice. However, with a system as corrupt as the one in the DRC, justice is often fleeting if at all present.

After the film, Jackson held a question-and-answer session. Many of the questions focused on her experiences, and many attendees wanted to know how they could do more to help.

"One of the first things you need to do is get yourself informed," Jackson said, and encouraged students to read about this issue in King Leopold's Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa. The book, written by Adam Hochschild in October 1999, discusses Belgian King Leopold's reign of terror that resulted in the deaths of 4 to 8 million residents of the Congo.

Jackson also recommended visiting the Friends of the Congo Web site (www.friendsoft hecongo.org), which can refer students to organizations working in the region.

"Make it part of the conversation the same way that Darfur was for years and years, and the Congo is even more of a catastrophe than Darfur was," she said.

Dr. Kelley Ready (HELLER) urged those present to become active in groups like STAND and Shalupe, which try to bring awareness about the issue to campus. Shalupe is an organization based in Braintree, Mass. that uses donations to provide services, information and education in the DRC. STAND is a a student anti-genocide coalition that works on helping to end the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. Ready also urged people to sign a petition to urge their senators and representatives to support the Conflict Coltan and Cassiterite Act of 2008. This legislation, which was introduced on?May 23, 2008, by Senators Sam Brownback (R-Kn.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), would require the certification of minerals like Coltan from the DRC. Coltan is essential for the manufacturing of electronic devices such as cell phones and laptops. It is found in abundance in the DRC and is responsible for funding many of the militia-controlled groups that are responsible for the rapes.

The last comment of the night, made by a member of the Shalupe Foundation, urged those present not to treat the film as a sad movie they watched and then forget about, but to take action and help to end the violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.