“I wish they had killed me.” The camera focused on the veil of shadowed light and not on her face in order to keep her identity secret. The veil of darkness did little to hide the emotions of her plea for death.
She watched as the soldiers entered into her home and slaughtered each family member with machetes, slicing them as one would cut through the clearing of heavy grass or bush. Except this slashing brought forth screams and human blood instead of plant sap and falling underbrush. The woman went on to describe how the soldiers kicked each body as they fell lifeless, just to make sure that indeed they were lifeless.
She lay under one of those bodies pretending to be dead, all the while watching as these same men gang raped a three year old girl. When they had left the house and the 20 or so dead bodies, she saw her chance to escape. She groped and crawled from under this gruesome pile and used what strength she had to run from the house to the nearest bushes. Who knows, they had burned the other houses on the compound and they could just as well set fire to this one to make sure there was indeed no one alive.
She ran, but not quickly enough. Some soldiers saw her. They caught her. At least 20 of them gang raped her. They left her. She was found later by relief workers and of course the camera crew that did the interview. “I wish they had killed me.”
This is the Democratic Republic of Congo today. Pray for the victims of the war that is brought about by the thirst for revenge, greed of resources and the lust for blood and power.