UN / DRC REAX

Commenting on the mass rape which took place earlier this month during a rebel siege of a township in North Kivu, US Ambassador Susan Rice says that , "If there was in fact some understanding of insecurity or rebel presence, what response did MONUSCO take and what response should they have taken, and we await the answer to that question." UNTV

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:00
• Production Date: 26 August 2010
• Asset Language: Original
• Corporate Name: UNITED NATIONS OBSERVER MISSSION IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO - MONUC
• Subject Topical: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS; PEACE AND SECURITY; DISARMAMENT
• Geographic Subject: DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
• MAMS Id: U100826b

Description

STORY: UN / DRC REAX
TRT: 2.00
SOURCE: UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 26 AUGUST 2010, NEW YORK CITY

Shotlist

RECENT 2010, NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations headquarters

26 AUGUST 2010, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, President of the Security Council, Ambassador Vitaly Churkin approaches microphone
3. Cutaway, cameraman
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation and President of the Security Council for the month of August:
The members of the Security Council expressed their outrage at the recent case of mass rape in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, allegedly perpetrated by elements of the ‘Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda’ and Mai Mai. The members of the Security Council reiterated their demand that all parties to the armed conflict immediately seize completely all forms of sexual violence and all human rights abuses against the civilian population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo including, in particular gender based violence”.
5. Cutaway, cameramen
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation and President of the Security Council for the month of August:
“There was general feeling things didn’t work as the way they should have worked and it is the intention of the council to look into it very thoroughly and as the statement said everything needs to be done in order to prevent such occurrences in the future.”
7. Cutaway, cameraman
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Susan Rice, Permanent representative of the United States, United Nations:
“I want to take this opportunity to reiterate from the US point of view our strongest possible condemnation of the rapes and attacks that occurred against scores of innocent civilians. We’re horrified and we’re outraged and that led us in conjunction with the French to request this detailed briefing this morning. It was a disturbing briefing both from what we learned and what we don’t know still.”
9. Cutaway, journalist taking notes
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Susan Rice, Permanent representative of the United States, United Nations:
"If there was in fact some understanding of insecurity or rebel presence, what response did MONUSCO take and what response should they have taken, and we await the answer to that question."
11. Med shot, hands taking notes
12. Meds shot, Susan Rice leaves microphone behind

Storyline

The United Nations (UN) Security Council today (26 August) in New York condemned the reported rape of more than 150 women allegedly committed by rebels in a remote area in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, in his capacity as the president of the Security Council for the month of August, read a press statement to the media condemning the attack.

He said that the members of the Security Council expressed their outrage at the recent case of mass rape in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, allegedly perpetrated by elements of the Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda (FDLR) and Mai Mai.

The statement reiterated the Security Council demand that all parties to the armed conflict immediately seize all forms of sexual violence and human rights abuses against the civilian population of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Churkin said that there was general feeling in the Council that “things didn’t work as the way they should have worked and it is the intention of the council to look into it very thoroughly.”

United States Ambassador Susan Rice also briefed journalists and expressed the horror and outrage against the attack. She added that “it was a disturbing briefing both from what we learned and what we don’t know still.”

Asked by a journalists to comment on reports criticizing the UN for having previous knowledge of rebel presence in the villages, Rice said that if there was in fact some understanding of insecurity or rebel presence, “what response did MONUSCO take and what response should they have taken, and we await the answer to that question."

Yesterday (25 August) UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon decided to dispatch a high-ranking peacekeeping official to Kinshasa to investigate the incident.