I don't know if anyone else saw the 60 Minutes show tonight about rape in Congo (see: http://tinyurl.com/2ogl8s ). They estimated that 90% of women in some areas are rape survivors, mostly or gang rapes repeated daily for months. There is only one hospital, the Panzi Hospital in the Eastern region (the most dangerous area), one doctor, Denis Mukwege, and one women's group serving rape victims. Dr. Mukwege said, "I see women here who have simply stopped living." A majority of children in Congo now are born as a result of rape. Sadly, two countries most significantly involved in the conflict, Rwanda and Uganada, are both considered US Allies, and therefore the White House (current and previous) has been slow to respond at all, and even then only to respond with words and no intervention for the victims.

I'd like to start a program here to write letters of support and hope for the women in their hospital. The women's program offers surgical care, basic education and literacy, and fair-trade craftsmen training for the women.

We are talking about THOUSANDS of women, not a few. Would you like to help me start a program that extends overseas support to women in Congo? I already have the contact information; it's simply a matter of organizing the effort now. We could start with letter writing. I could send them to Dr. Mukwege himself, or to the international women's program ("Women for Women") to distribute. Dr. Mukwege is the only male these women trust.

There are also 5k runs for Congolese women to raise funds (Lucinda, our celebrity runner, this is your area!), so I'd love to see a "Resurrection After Rape" run/walk here, or even in your local communities, that we could participate in. If enough women on RAR are interested, I'd consider looking into the way to organize a very simply 5k event here; I have contact/training materials for that as well.

You can also donate to the Panzi hospital directly at http://www.stephenlewisfoundation.org/panzi.htm or https://secure.ga4.org/01/drcongo