As
UN Tells ICP
It Repatriated
17 in 2012 for
Sexual Abuse,
Grace Period?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
February 20, updated
– The day
after the UN
told Inner
City Press
it had “substantiated”
three sexual
exploitation
or abuse cases
against its
Peacekeeping
personnel in
2012, with 30
investigations
still pending,
Inner City
Press asked
for specifics
on the three
cases.
Were
the
perpetrators
repatriated,
sent back to
their
countries?
Were they
prosecuted
there?
Secretary
General
Ban Ki-moon's
spokesman
Martin Nesirky
replied that
“it's
for the
countries from
which those
people came to
give details
on
what happens
when those
people return
home. I'm
trying to get
more
about those
three cases.”
After
the noon
briefing,
Spokesman
Nesirky's
office sent
this to Inner
City
Press:
From:
UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Wed, Feb
20, 2013
at 12:41 PM
Subject: Your
questions at
today's noon
briefing
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
Regarding
repatriations
of UN
peacekeepers:
In 2012, it
was determined
that
nine police
and eight
military
personnel
would be
repatriated on
disciplinary
grounds and
barred from
participating
in future
field
missions in
connection
with 13
substantiated
allegations
received in
2012 or
earlier*.
So
why were TEN
“substantiated”
cases from
before 2012
left unacted
on until 2012?
[See
additional UN
response, and
UK comment,
below.]
Just as Inner
City Press has
identified a
“rape
grace period”
in UN
Peacekeeping
chief's
inaction on
the 126 rapes
in Minova by
the Congolese
Army he
partners with
-- until the
Congolese
investigation
is completed,
though Ladsous
said the UN
knows the
identity of
most of the
perpetrators
-- is there a
“grace
period” for UN
personnel?
In
fact, the way
the question
is answered
one cannot
know if any of
the
2012
perpetrators
of
substantiated
abuse were
repatriated:
all
thirteen could
come from
previous
years.
On
Ladsous' most
recent report
on the Congo,
Inner City
Press asked how
to square the
report's claim
that support
to Congo's
Army was in
full
compliance
with Ban's
Human Rights
Due Diligence
Policy
with Ladsous
saying that
the UN knows
the identity
of Minova
perpetrators
but
hasn't barred
anyone.
Nesirky
replied
that “Mr.
Ladsous has
squared it
when answered
your
question.
There is an
investigation
underway."
Nesirky
referred to
due
process -- not
mentioned by
Ladsous when
he said the UN
knows the
identities of
most of the
perpetrators
-- and then
Nesirky said
“you
need to
know... if
alleged
offenses
actually took
place.”
But
the UN has
repeatedly
said 126 rapes
occurred in
Minova,
between
November 20
and 22, 2012.
Now three
months later,
the UN says it
can't know if
anything
happened?
This goes
beyond a grace
period.
Watch this
site.
Update:
at 4 pm, the
UN provided a
further
response, as
well as one
below from the
UK Mission to
the UN.
From
the UN: "In
addition to
our previous
information to
you about
repatrations
of
peacekeepers,
we would like
to add that
the number of
investigations
and actions
per year vary
and do not
necessarily
correspond to
the
allegations
received in
that same
year."
From
spokesperson
Iona Thomas of
the UK Mission
to the UN:
“The
UK strongly
condemns
sexual
exploitation
and abuse
carried out by
UN
Peacekeepers.
We welcome the
procedures in
place to
investigate
all
allegations as
part of the
UN’s zero
tolerance
policy.
“The UK’s
Preventing
Sexual
Violence
Initiative
aims to
address the
culture of
impunity
surrounding
the use of
sexual
violence in
conflict, and
to improve
support for
survivors.
This will
involve
deploying
teams of
experts to
assist
survivors and
support local
capacity in,
for example,
areas
bordering
Syria, Libya,
the DRC,
Bosnia and
Herzegovina,
and
Mali. We
are also
working in
close
collaboration
with the
Office of the
UN Special
Representative
on Sexual
Violence in
Conflict to
identify
additional
countries
where our team
of experts can
helpfully be
deployed.”
, 
