UNITED NATIONS: Following significant claims of sexual exploitation and abuse, the UN is relocating an entire unit of 60 peacekeepers from Tanzania who were stationed in the western region of the Central African Republic (CAR).
Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters at the regular noon news briefing on Friday that the Secretariat in New York had made the decision to send the unit home following consultations with the peacekeeping mission in CAR, MINUSCA.
Dujarric said, “the decision was made following a preliminary investigation that discovered credible evidence that 11 members of the unit had allegedly exploited and abused four victims sexually.” According to a statement from MINUSCA, a fast response team was “immediately deployed” to investigate the claims.
UN Peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix commented on the news on Twitter, saying that the scourge has no place in any aspect of his department and that the impending repatriation “is a robust measure taken to protect victims and demonstrate our resolve to address these wrongs with the troop-contributing country swiftly.”
“The Mission’s humanitarian partners are providing treatment and support to the victims who have been identified. A team from the Mission has also been sent out to interact with the local community more, he continued.
The Spokesperson said the Tanzanian Government had already been formally notified of the decision and had deployed a national investigation team to CAR.
“In reaffirming their commitment to zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, the Tanzanian authorities noted the seriousness of the allegations and have committed to taking the necessary action to address these matters.”
Dujarric added that the unit had been relocated away from the area where the alleged abuse took place are now confined to barracks “to protect victims as well, of course, as the integrity of the investigation. The unit will be repatriated once their presence is no longer required in theatre by the investigators.”
He said the Secretariat’s choice was made in accordance with Security Council resolution 2272, which expressly supports the UN Secretary-General’s authority to order the return of peacekeeping personnel from “a particular military unit or formed police unit of a contingent when there is credible evidence of widespread or systemic sexual exploitation and abuse by that unit.”
Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, declared early in his term that there would be “zero tolerance” for sexual abuse by UN employees and urged Member States to sign a voluntary compact on preventing and combating the problem in 2017. Dujarric emphasized that the UN is still dedicated to “robustly implementing” the zero-tolerance policy on all fronts. —APP
