Klippefast nonne får UNHCR’s flygtningepris 2013

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I en verden, hvor voldtægt bruges som krigsvåben og ofrene betaler den dobbelte pris af både trauma og social udstødelse, har den romersk-katolske nonne Søster Angelique Namaika været en klippefast støtte for congolesiske kvinder. Nu får hun årets Nansen-medalje

GENEVA, 27 September 2013, (UNHCR: Sister Angélique Namaika, a Congolese nun who has shown exceptional courage and unwavering support for survivors of violence in DR Congo, has been selected as the 2013 winner of UNHCR’s Nansen Refugee Award.

The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a brutal Ugandan rebel group, has waged a campaign of violence that has uprooted hundreds of thousands of people in north-eastern DR Congo’s Orientale province over the past decade.

Many Congolese women and girls have been kidnapped and terrorized.

Sister Angélique has been a beacon of hope for these victims, known for her very personal, one-on-one approach to help survivors move beyond their trauma. Many of the people under her care have been forcibly displaced and subjected to sexual violence.

The brutality of the LRA is notorious and the testimonials of the women Sister Angélique has helped are horrific.

Adding to their trauma is the fact that many of the victims are stigmatized by society because of their experience. It takes a special person to help them heal and rebuild their lives.

This Year’s Nansen Refugee Award winner has spent the past decade helping women, mostly through a combination of income-generation activities, skills development courses, literacy training and psycho-social counselling.

She has made a positive difference to the lives of thousands of individuals, their families and communities.

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