Militamen raping refugee women

Armed militias are raping refugee women in northern Tanzania, very often in front of their husbands and children, Refugees International said following a visit to the camps. It said one in four women had been the victims of either rape or extreme sexual harassment. "Women are at risk from sexual predators each step of the flight from their homes to the refugee camps," the report stated. "The risk continues during the arduous trek to Tanzania as refugees spend weeks walking in circuitous routes to avoid militias and landmines." The report also warned that many young men, who themselves had frequently been brutalised as children, were susceptible to recruitment by armed gangs and militias. A campaign run by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) - the Gender Violence Programme - has had some success in protecting women, the report said. Its most important progress has been the arrest and punishment of the perpetrators of sexual assault.