Denis Mukwege
Denis Mukwege | |
|---|---|
 The Doctor in his office in Panzi. | |
| Born | Denis Mukengere Mukwege August 8, 1958 |
| Nationality | Congolese |
| Occupation | Gynecologist |
Denis Mukwege (born 1 March 1955) is a Congolese gynecologist. He founded and works in Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, where he specializes in the treatment of women who have been gang-raped by rebel forces, Mukwege has probably become the world's leading expert on how to repair the internal physical damage caused by gang rape.[1] He has treated several thousands of women since the 1998 Congo's war, some of them more than once, performing up to 10 surgeries a day during his 18-hour working days. He has described how his patients arrive at the hospital sometimes naked, usually bleeding and leaking urine and faeces from torn vaginas.[1]
Early life
Mukwege was the third of nine children born to a Pentecostal minister and his wife. He studied medicine because he wanted to heal the sick that his father prayed for, working at first in a rural hospital, then traveling to France to study gynecology, after seeing the complications of childbirth experienced by women in the Congo who had no access to specialist healthcare.[1]
UN speech and attack
In September 2012, Mukwege made a strong speech condemning impunity for mass rape in the D.R. Congo, openly criticizing the shameful 16 years of inaction by the International Community and the Congolese government about the massacres in the Kivu region of the D.R.C.
On October 25, 2012, four armed men attacked his residence while he was not home, held his daughters hostages, and waited for his return to assassinate him. Upon his return, his guard intervened and was shot dead by the assassins. They missed Mukwege as he dropped to the ground during the shooting.[2] After the assassination attempt, Mukwege went into exile in Europe and the Panzi Hospital reported that his absence has had a “devastating effect” on its daily operations.[3]
He returned to Bukavu on January 14, 2013 where the population reserved him a warm welcome over the 20 miles from the Kavumu airport to the city of Bukavu, especially from his patients, who had raised funds to pay for his return ticket by selling pineapples and onions.
Awards
- Republic of France "Special Human Rights Prize 2007" taken to Panzi Hospital in Bukavu by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs Rama Yade (June 2008)
- UN Human Rights prize (New York, December 10, 2008)[4]
- Olof Palme Prize (Sweden, January 2009)[5]
- African of the Year (Nigeria, January 2009), awarded by Daily Trust[5]
- Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur by the French government (Kinshasa, November 2009) by French Ambassador Pierre Jacquemot.
- Van Heuven Goedhart-Award (June 2010) from the Netherlands Refugee Foundation (Stichting Vluchteling)
- Honorary Doctorate by the faculty of medicine at Umeå University, [6] (Sweden, June 2010)
- The Wallenberg Medal from the University of Michigan (October 2010)
- The King Baudouin International Development Prize (Brussels, May 24, 2011)[7] by the King of Belgium Albert II.
- Clinton Global Citizen Award for Leadership in Civil Society (New York, September 22, 2011)[8] by President Bill Clinton.
- Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur Française (Panzi, July 8, 2013) brought to Bukavu by the First Lady of France Valérie Trierweiler and the Minister of Francophonie Yamina Benguigui.
- Human Rights First Award (August 5, 2013)[9]
- Right Livelihood Award (September 26, 2013)[10]; also known as "The Alternative Nobel Prize"
- "Prize for Conflict Prevention" by the Fondation Chirac (Paris, October 10, 2013) [11] honored by the presence of 2 French Presidents Jacques Chirac and François Hollande
- Honorary degree from Université catholique de Louvain in Belgium (February 3, 2014)[12] along with Lawrence Lessig and Jigme Thinley
See also
Notes
- ^ a b c Nolen, Stephanie. "Where repairing rape damage is an expertise," The Globe and Mail, October 22, 2008.
- ^ Nicholas Kristof (October 26, 2012). "An Attack on One of My Heroes, Dr. Denis Mukwege". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 22 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Congo-Kinshasa: A Red Armband for Dr Mukwege, Africa: Allafrica.com, 2012, retrieved 16 November 2012
- ^ "United Nations Human Rights Prize 2008". 2008-02-14. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
- ^ a b "DR Congo doctor is 'top African'". BBC News. 2008-12-10. Retrieved 2009-02-01.
- ^ "'Activists against rape and sexual violence in combat named honorary doctors". June 18, 2010.
- ^ "The King Baudouin International Development Prize, A Prestigious and Original Accolade". 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2011-05-24.
- ^ "The Clinton Global Citizen Award".
- ^ "'Dr. Denis Mukwege recognized for his tireless and courageous work on behalf of women victims of rape in war-torn DRC.'".
- ^ "'Alternative Nobel Prize' awarded for courageous work healing women victim of war-time sexual violence". Deutsche Welle. September 26, 2013.
- ^ "'Denis Mukwege Laureate of the 2013 Prize for conflict prevention'".
- ^ "Fête de l'université 2014 - Doctorats honoris causa". UCL - Université catholique de Louvain. 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2014-02-03.