Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been criticized this week for an uncharacteristic response to some questions while on her visit to Congo. She essentially chewed out a Congolese student for asking what her husband, Bill Clinton, thought about a Chinese trade deal with the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“You want me to tell you want my husband thinks,” the secretary of state replied, obviously annoyed for being expected to speak for her husband.
“My husband is not secretary of state, I am,” she said, emphatically. “If you want my opinion I will tell you my opinion. I am not going to be channeling my husband.”
Turns out there was a mistake in the translation process, and the student really wanted to know what President Barack Obama thought of the deal, not former President Clinton.
Even so, Clinton’s ticked-off response was an unfortunate departure from what we would expect from our country’s chief diplomat. Being dignified and poised even under the most serious scrutiny or in the most uncomfortable circumstances is a requirement of the secretary of state.
That’s her job.
But, what’s even more unfortunate is that this two-minute slip-up during a Congolese question-and-answer session has essentially voided much possibility of bringing due attention to the reason she was in Congo in the first place. Did you know:
• The eastern Congo has one of the highest rates of sexual violence against women in the world. Hundreds of thousands of women have been raped, most of them gang raped, since the civil war started in the region 10 years ago. More than 5 million people have died in this war, the deadliest conflict since World War II.
• It’s not the kind of sexual violence we often think of in the West. Rape is a weapon of war and a form of terrorism and brutality that armed groups use to show their power and authority to a community.
• When a woman is raped, members of her community are lined up to witness her being violated, cut, mutilated, items shoved inside of her and then even shot between her legs. Hospitals are filled with girls and women who can no longer control their bodily functions and are desperate for medical help.
• Girls as young as 3 years old are victims of this kind of inhumanity. In some villages, 90 percent of the women have been raped and many become pregnant and/or contract HIV.
• The Congolese officials do not take the problem seriously. While the hospital beds are filled to capacity with victims, the prisons are empty. Few, if any, rapists are ever arrested, convicted or imprisoned.
It seems to me those are some facts to get ticked-off about. Unfortunately, in the wake of Secretary of State Clinton’s faux pas, no one has heard much about them this week.
Condemning this inhumanity in Congo, raising awareness around the world of this country’s incalculably desperate state of affairs and pushing for peace was our secretary of state’s job this week while on her trip to Africa.
Let’s hope she’s still able to do it.
Ashley Knecht Walker
Projects Editor
Comments
We allow registered users to post comments on this Web site. To learn more about our posting policies please read our User Poster Agreement Policy.
mistyblue (anonymous) says...
Isn't this article a bit to descriptive of the torture? Don't we have young people that read the newsletter?
I certainly wouldn't my preteen to read this article and she certainly will not read this newspaper in the future!
August 13, 2009 at 6:52 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
atimeforourwomen (anonymous) says...
In my opinion, this article is not too descriptive, in fact, it is very well written. If anything, only barely touches the surface of the agony and terror these women and girls experience, and then have to live with for the rest of their lives.
It is a terrible truth, and one that it if it were more widely known, perhaps would cease. Maybe those of us who become aware, including our young people will become the collective voice that is heard loud enough to make a difference, and cause a change for these people before there is nothing left of them. Alas, Sec. Clinton is not likely that voice but... she may get another chance if it is her intent.
It is our responsibility as parents to monitor and guard what information our children are exposed to, by any medium. It is our media's responsibility to alert us of what is happening in our world.
I applaud this publication for this article.
The world is sometimes an ugly place, but we can strive to make it better through knowledge, compassion, and courage.
August 13, 2009 at 7:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Maximus (anonymous) says...
I applaud your article, Ashley. I want to also point out to you and your readers that women in Congo aren't the only victims of rape. Men and young boys are also victimized - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/05/wor...
August 13, 2009 at 7:59 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
ChrisBatchman (anonymous) says...
Great article! For people that are offended by this article, lock your doors, and don't turn on your TV or surf the web! The world is a dangerous place, and it is good to be aware of what is going on so that you can keep you and your family safe. For example, look at the violence that is taking place in Mexico, just south of our border. Would you let your family go down there knowing that they could become a victim of that violence? I agree that something must be done, but to what extent do we stretch our military?
Anyhow, Secretary Clinton made one of the worst mistakes she could make in her position, and that is to let her personal life interfere with her work. She should have handled it like a professional, but this is how we see the true colors of who she is.
August 13, 2009 at 10:22 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
justthefacts (anonymous) says...
Ms. Clinton sort of reminded me of a certain character from Animal Farm,,,what was the character's name???? er Napoleon? 4 legs good...2 legs better....
August 13, 2009 at 11:51 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
create (anonymous) says...
This article was well-written and makes an excellent point by questioning why those vicious brutalities should have taken a backseat to HIllary Clinton's missteps.
Of course an article like this should be published in a daily newspaper. What is more, it should be read and discussed by mothers and their daughters so those daughters can realize how lucky they are. For gosh sakes, why hide the world from your children? Oh, I forgot, let's just be all pink and fluffy and worry about whether our purse matches our shoes.
Did you know this kind of brutality is happening now in an area of Arizona where African refugees are living? That the family of the victim who was gang-raped, an 8-year-old girl, has blamed the girl for bringing all this "confusion" upon them? That the boys, ages 10 to 14, didn't find anything wrong with what they did until it was pointed out to them?
"A little knowledge is a dangerous thing" (Alexander Pope).
August 14, 2009 at 8:24 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Pollyanna (anonymous) says...
The inhumane horrors and daily incidences of violence and brutality against women and children in the Congo makes me physically nautious. Thinking of what a young girls life may be like living in that horiffic environment is something most of us cannot fathom.
Putting our heads in the sand and not addressing it with our own families and children (males and females) continues to keep the shame and stigma of rape in the darkened corners where nobody wants to venture.
Not to diminish the plight of Congolese victims, our own national stats on rape are nothing to be boastful about. Now stats are proving that 1 in 3 women in our country will be a victim of sexual assault in her lifetime. We all have a responsibility to step up with our families and talk about power and control, healthy relationships and dating, setting boundaries and not to let our young men get sucked into the stereotype of equating being a real man with dominance, power and aggression over others.
August 14, 2009 at 8:42 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
dalelinn (anonymous) says...
My wife and I both thought the article was well written. Too often we like to protect our children from some of life's outrageous aggressions while education, guidance, and knowledge would seem to be their best protection. The agression Ashley described needs to be exposed to the world.
August 14, 2009 at 9:10 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )