As night fell on Sept. 17 in Butembo, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kanyere Kalumbiro finished collecting firewood and began returning home.

Suddenly, a member of the Islamic extremist Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) aggressively covered her head and dragged her away against her will. They held the Christian woman captive for three days at Mughulungu in Virunga National Park.

“I was raped by ADF terrorists,” she said. “I never thought that one day I would be among people in the community again.”

Although the DRC is roughly 90% Christian, the ADF has worked for years to establish Islamic law throughout eastern DRC. The rebel group often kidnaps Christians and kills them if they refuse to convert to Islam.

These ADF fighters decided not to kill Kalumbiro. Before they released her, one of the rebels struck her with a machete, cutting her ear. The scar is a painful reminder of the horrors she faced.

“Those days in the bush have left me traumatized, marked forever by violence and fear,” she said.

When Kalumbiro returned home, she expected her family to comfort and support her. Instead, they rejected her.

“By God’s grace, I was finally set free, but when I returned home, I was not welcomed,” she said. “My husband did not want me to stay with him because I was raped.”

Suddenly, Kalumbiro found herself homeless and alone. In desperation, she turned to a local orphanage. There, she was received with compassion and care. Kalumbiro still lives at the orphanage, which has become a refuge and a place of healing. Without it, she would have been left alone and vulnerable.

By sharing her story, Kalumbiro hopes to raise awareness of the urgent need for continued assistance to survivors of sexual violence related to religious conflict.

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