“You are called a woman to build peace where walls divide, to plant hope where tears reside,” writes Do Nsoseme Dora, a Congolese spoken word artist and photographer, in her poem named You are called woman. “You are called to lead, to mend, to care.”
Born in Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Nsoseme, is one of the photographers whose work is featured in the Through Her Lens: Women Rising for Peace exhibit at the United Nations, marking the 25th anniversary of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda - a landmark Security Council resolution that reaffirmed women's indispensable role in building peace globally and in their communities.
“My country is under the shoulders of women,” says Nsoseme, whose work primarily seeks to illuminate the overlooked stories of women impacting their society. Nsoseme is driven by the sheer, resilient strength of women who, despite enduring the very worst hardships, “will still stand and they will still speak out.”
“Sometimes, I wonder, how come we have such great women? Where do they come from? What made them become so strong that they are carrying the whole country?”
Under the shoulders of women
In 1994, the year Nsoseme was born, the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda plunged DRC into one of the deadliest conflicts in Africa's history. From 1998 to 2007, an estimated 5.4 million people died due to the conflict.
In the east of the country, fighting between M23 militiamen and the Congolese government forces continues to spark new displacement, with over 1.6 million people displaced this year alone, making DRC one of the world's largest displacement crises, according to the World Food Programme.
Earlier this year, UN Women warned that the escalation of violence has resulted in a devastating humanitarian crisis, disproportionately affecting women and girls, who are bearing the brunt of both direct and indirect consequences of the conflict, with their rights, safety, and dignity increasingly under threat.
The current UN Peacekeeping Mission in the country, MONUSCO, is one of the largest across the world, with thousands of troops, police and civilian peacekeepers working to protect civilians and to support the government in stabilization and peace efforts.
Despite the instability that continues to plague the natural resource-rich country, women remain its fundamental backbone, sustaining force and essential source of resilience for the country, says Nsoseme for whom, the resilience of the Congolese people, particularly its women, is unmatched.
“The people of the DRC are the most resilient I know and the most hopeful I know,” she adds. “Sometimes I wonder, how can you be hopeful? How can you still enjoy life, knowing all the struggles, all the difficulties and all the issues?”
“You know, it's just that we know that everything has an end. We're working towards it, but not just that, we are also hopeful that we can make a better future for our children, for our families, for the dream that, one day, we will have a beautiful and great country.”
This vision compels her to use her spoken word and camera to challenge the narrative, recognizing women not just as victims, but as central figures in building peace.
The photography she creates is more than art; it becomes a "tool for advocacy," encouraging the world to take action to stop the violence and support women peacebuilders. Her work is a powerful reminder that “women can be those who are forward, those who are leading, those who are shaping the world.”
“I am so touched by the courage that they have. They don't give up. And when I see them not giving up, who am I to give up? I cannot, because those women are giving me all that I need to keep moving.”
The Through Her Lens: Women Rising for Peace exhibit is a collaboration between the UN Departments of Peace Operations and Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, UN Women and the Elsie Initiative Fund.
Learn about the WPS Peace Circle featuring Do Nsoseme Dora and other young women advocates for peace.
