Madam, - It was with a mixture of sorrow and anger that I read Brian O'Connell's article "Where Women fear to tread" (Life Features, October 9th). Having represented a number of Congolese women who have sought asylum in Ireland, I found the accounts in this article sadly similar to stories I have heard at first hand.
It was very depressing to read Christine Schuler Deschryver's assertion that 48 hours after a rare silverback gorilla was killed in neighbouring Rwanda, millions in international funding was sent to protect the remaining gorillas, while by contrast little was being done to help the women and children of East Congo, innocent victims of systematic sexual violence. She concludes that this is because "in the eyes of the international community animals have more value than humans in that part of the world".
Can any sensible person reasonably contradict her opinion? Given what has happened in Rwanda in 1994, and what is now happening in Darfur and East Congo, what other conclusion can a right-thinking observer arrive at except this: the UN and the international community simply do not care about poor, black people? How bad do things have to become before we are willing to take the steps necessary to protect our fellow human beings? - Yours, etc,
KATIE DAWSON, Templeogue, Dublin 6w.