Duchess of Edinburgh says sexual violence must ‘get under your skin’ after hearing harrowing stories in Congo

On Monday, she arrived in Beni, in the east of the DRC, where she listened to harrowing testimony. A 16-year-old girl told her she had been attacked by a police officer, while another woman described being assaulted as she fled rebel fighters.

The duchess, who shares two children with Prince Edward – Lady Louise Windsor, 21, and James, Earl of Wessex, 17 – removed her shoes to sit with survivors in a tent, some of whom broke down in tears while sharing their experiences.

At the Panzi Clinic in Kinshasa, two days later, Sophie observed Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr Denis Mukwege carry out surgery on a five-year-old girl who had been raped.

The facility specialises in supporting victims of sexual violence in conflict. She was accompanied at the clinic by the UK’s ambassador to the DRC, Alyson King.

Speaking after her visit, the duchess told reporters: “You have to really question yourself and go, ‘How can we have reached a point where rape is just accepted as a part of daily life?’

“So it’s horrible to hear their stories, but each one deserves to be told and each one deserves recognition, so I don’t make light of any of them, and I just wish we didn’t have to hear them, but it’s important that we do.”

She added: “I think you have to allow this issue to get under your skin. And there is only one way to achieve that, you really have to go and see it for yourself.

“You have to understand the environment in which people are living and sit with these people, where they come from, don’t make them come to you, you have to go to them.

“And you have to understand where they live, the circumstances that they’re in, what has brought them to the moment that I am with them and what their futures may or may not hold, and unfortunately, what they might not hold is often the case.”

Later that day, Sophie met women who had survived sexual assaults during a mass breakout at Makala Central Prison in Kinshasa last year.

She made her way down a rubble-strewn path to a safehouse where they were being sheltered. Inside a cramped and stifling room with two bunkbeds, women spoke about forced abortions, rejection by their families, and the constant dangers they still face.

The east of the country, rich in minerals, has endured decades of bloodshed, forcing more than seven million people from their homes.

In early 2024, M23 rebels — reportedly supported by Rwanda — captured the cities of Goma and Bukavu in one of the most serious escalations of the conflict. Other armed groups, including the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), which has links to the Islamic State group, have also staged deadly attacks.

The duchess, 60, flew into Beni from Entebbe, Uganda, on Monday morning, travelling with a protective security team. Speaking after landing, she said it was an “honour” to return to the DRC, following her first visit in 2022, though she admitted: “I wish it was in happier times.”

Sophie also spent time with female peacekeepers, telling them she had returned because the conflict required “resolution” and promising that she intended to come again. One woman challenged her directly, saying Britain was complicit in failing to act firmly against Rwanda. The duchess responded that she was doing everything possible to draw attention to the situation.

One woman explained that she and her daughter were raped by armed robbers, leading to the collapse of her marriage and her husband taking her child away. She now makes waffles through an income-generating scheme at the hospital, calling the programme a “game changer”.

Another survivor said her 12-year-old daughter had been raped. She now sells vegetables in local markets to pay for her daughter’s schooling.

A 22-year-old woman presented Sophie with a Union flag made of beads, explaining she had spent five hours creating it. The Duchess of Edinburgh rounded off her visit with a meeting with President Felix Tshisekedi at his office, where the pair exchanged pleasantries in French.