Immaculée Birhaheka

Immaculée Birhaheka (born 1960) is a human rights activist from Democratic Republic of Congo. She is co-founder and president of the women's rights organization Promotion et Appui aux Initiatives Feminines (PAIF) which works to combat sexual violence and increase the participation of women in civic life.

Early life and education Birhaheka was born in a rural part of South Kivu in 1960. She studied rural development as a college student in Bukavu. Her interest in improving the lives of women first began while working on a nutrition study looking at the types of labor done by rural women. This area of study would become the subject of her college thesis.

After witnessing the marginalization of women in Congolese society, both in the rural communities she studied and in her own experiences of higher education, Birhaheka began speaking up in favor of women's rights.

The initial mission of PAIF was to improve women's status in public life: to stop women from being relegated to housework and the home, and instead educate them and facilitate their participation in politics, the law, and human rights causes. They began by working on water supply systems, to allow girls who would otherwise have to fetch water in the mornings to attend school. PAIF also worked to educate both men and women in rural communities about women's rights, using radio stations to promote "the inclusion of women as a development strategy".

The organization also advocated for greater enforcement and prosecution of rape as a crime.

Because of her work on behalf of women and survivors of sexual violence, Birhaheka received death threats from within the government and from militia groups. She was detained twice by the Congolese Intelligence Service.

Awards Immaculée Birhaheka was a recipient of the 2000 Martin Ennals Award for human rights defenders.