Perth Archdiocesan Respect Life officer Bronia Karniewicz will be participating in the City to Surf fun run on 28 August to raise funds for women and children of the Congo affected by sexual crime.
The Karniewicz running machine is known as Team Caritas Congo.
Any sponsorship Bronia and her friends raise will be channelled through the church’s aid and development agency, Caritas.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is one of Africa’s richest countries in natural resources, yet remains one of the world’s most poverty-stricken nations. Despite the official end of war in 2003 the Congolese people face ongoing conflict and persistent human rights abuses.
Around the country, sexual violence continues on a massive scale and devastates the lives of tens of thousands of women and children each year, depriving them of their fundamental human rights and dignity.
Those who want to support Bronia and friends can do so via the Caritas website and donate to their team there, or contact her via the Respect Life office to make donations directly.
Caritas ensures that donations go directly to helping the people of the DRC while keeping administration costs to a bare minimum.
Among other objectives, the money raised will go towards; medical assistance, counselling and education. It will also be directed to programs that can help Congolese support themselves.
Consequences of rape for women in the DRC often do not stop with the event; women are often rejected by their husbands and communities through the stigma of rape.
Ms Karneiwicz said aid funds will also work towards trying to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice for their crimes. This helps give women hope because they see that their dignity and self worth are worth fighting for.
Ms Karniewicz can be contacted at bronia@perthcatholic.org.au or on (08) 94445320.