Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

The South African military operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is responsible for 26 percent of sexual misconduct complaints against the UN peacekeeping force in the country.

Nicola Dahrendorf, UN director of the office for addressing sexual exploitation and abuse, said of the 95 accusations levelled at foreign military personnel, 30 were against SA National Defence Force troops.

"Eight were substantiated and repatriated back to South Africa," she said noting this was a total of 26 percent of all accusations.

These figures, however, did not include a further four cases involving seven South African soldiers who were alleged to have committed sexual misconduct crimes after September.

"These must be substantiated," she said, explaining that of those already proven guilty, one was a warrant officer and six were non-commissioned officers.

Dahrendorf was briefing members of the SA parliamentary defence committee who are in Kinshasa, the DRC on an oversight visit.

Accompanying the committee, Lieutenant-General Sipho Binda (chief of joint operations) said the SANDF took these allegations very seriously.

However, he cautioned that what was construed as sexual misconduct in the DRC may not be seen as such on home soil.

United Nations force commander General Babacar Geye voiced his concern at the high number of SANDF troops involved in the crimes.

"With 26 percent of allegations levelled against them, there is a concern. We must be honest and frank," he said.

He noted that the SANDF contingent was not even the largest military force in the country.

Dahrendorf cited chronic social and economic imbalances as the leading contributor to the problem.

She said that as most of the Congolese had nothing, the foreign military operatives appeared to be very wealthy to them and therefore created an immediate imbalance.

But she pointed out that of the sexually violent crimes committed in the DRC, only 0.9 percent of allegations were against civilians and 0.1 percent against military forces.

She said in a country where sexual violence was a great part of daily life, women often bore the brunt of atrocities committed by alleged freedom fighters.

Briefing the committee members, UN secretary-general representative William Lacy-Swing said, however, that the SA contribution to the peacekeeping efforts in the country was invaluable.

"The contribution of South Africa is extremely important," he said, also appreciating President Thabo Mbeki's personal interest.

"His support has been very solid," he said.

He told committee members that while there were many challenges in the DRC he was still very optimistic that elections would go ahead next year.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has put a female navy captain in charge of the integration of forces in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Captain Sonica van Rooyen, 42, will head the South African Detachment Assisting with Integration and Training -- also known as Teutonic 1.

The operation aims to integrate the DRC's regular army and rebel military forces -- using the experience South Africa gleaned from the integration of its own SANDF ten years ago.

Eighty-three times larger than neighbour Burundi and 24 times bigger than Liberia, the civil war has left the DRC with no infrastructure.

Naval officers were not normally associated with work in a country like the DRC, said Van Rooyen.

"I am very excited, but very nervous. For a naval officer this is an absolute first," she said.

It was an opportunity to show the rest of the SANDF that the navy could also contribute to the mission in the DRC.

During her year-long deployment, Van Rooyen will have to overcome historical mistrust between the regular Congolese army and rebel groups that have spent the last 45 years fighting.

"I am going to tackle that problem by being as open as possible. It will be extremely important to be visible and supportive. All will know what we are doing and why we are doing it," she said.

She and her husband Frank -- also a naval captain -- had agreed that the opportunity was a career and life-enhancing experience, said Van Rooyen.

While she would miss him, her mere presence in the military made it her duty to serve her country and go where she was sent.

She was, nonetheless, proud to have been chosen and recognised what her deployment could mean for the image of women in general.

"It was not my intention to prove a point for women, but yes, if I do make a success of it, then it will be a positive thing not only for the women in the SANDF but also for women from the DRC," she said.

Women often had a different way of thinking and doing things, and in a place like the DRC this was possibly a good thing, she said.

Stationed in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, Van Rooyen said she was more than ready to begin her command.

"While I have never been to the DRC before, I have travelled Africa and am comfortable with Africa. It does not scare me it calls me."