Police fight war on child prostitution in DRC

Coming from all social backgrounds, they are mostly minors, especially girls involved in prostitution in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Media reports claim that the number is unknown and are pushed to it just for the sake of surviving the biting economy.

They refer to themselves as “Ujana” which means “youth”. They mostly comprise of teenage girls whose ages range between 10 to 17 years. They mainly operate in bars, hotels and other night clubs.

But for a week now, the national police launched an operation against this form of prostitution from minors and even the elderly.

Some defend their actions.

“In my life I’ve never been supported, and I’m not a prostitute as such. Sometimes I go out, I can go clubbing, to relax, to dance, to drink, to This does not limit to do other things, “ one of the Victims said.

The DRC government vowed to apprehend minor involved in prostitution with the latest warning seems to target the “Ujana” group.

“The police gave details of its report: 166 people arrested, two bars closed, and in these bars we found, especially in Lemba if I’m not mistaken, very young girls,” the regional minister of gender and education, Theresa Olenga said.

On social media, police have been accused of abuse. According to this lawyer and human rights defender, the police do not respect the rights of these girls.

“We strongly condemn the manner in which this issue has been handled because the rights of these young girls have not been respected, mainly the girls who have been arrested from nightclubs”

Since its inception, the operation seems to be a success since the number of minor prostitutes has dropped in Kinshasa.

The Ujana are the consequence of the social crisis that sits in the DRC. Aids is a huge problem in Congo. According to figures by the national HIV and Aids programme, about five percent of the population is infected.