On
Minova Rapes,
ICP's Privacy
Question
Garners
MONUSCO
Response: The
Roots of
#LADSOUS2013
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, May 3
-- Not only
did UN
Peacekeeping
chief Herve
Ladsous for
four months
cover up the
126 rapes in
Minova by the
Congolese
Army, his
partners --
the UN also
reportedly
violated the
victims'
privacy.
By
contrast,
Ladsous has
repeatedly
refused to
name the two
Army
battalions
which were
involved in
the rapes. The
rapists are
given privacy
by the UN, but
the victims
reportedly are
not.
Inner
City Press: It
has to do
again with
these rapes in
Minova, but it
is a different
question;
actually,
quite
different. It
is reported in
the French
publication La
Croix that in
the course of
investigating
or looking
into the
rapes, that
MONUSCO
[United
Nations
Organization
Stabilization
Mission in the
Democratic
Republic of
the Congo]
staff
encouraged
doctors to
give files of
patients
without their
consent and
then brought
them a
judiciary
letter,
tbasically
doctors are
quoted saying
that they gave
records that
they shouldn’t
have given,
that were
covered by
privacy. I
wanted to
know, although
obviously
investigation
is important
and the
battalions
still haven’t
been named,
what’s the
UN’s response
to that? You
have two
competing
goods... but
are they aware
of this
allegation
that they
violated
patient
privacy and
what do they
say about it?
Do they intend
to do it in
the future?
Have they
learned
anything from
it?
Spokesperson
Nesirky:
Let’s check
with MONUSCO.
But
three days
later, there
was no answer.
In fact, on
May 2 Ladsous'
spokesman
Kieran Dwyer
gave a five
minute
justification
for Ladsous
refusing to
answer any of
Inner City
Press'
questions, due
to what he
called
"slurs." Video
here.
Yes,
Inner City
Press has
questioned and
reported on
Ladsous'
speeches and
memos during
the 1994
Rwanda
genocide, when
Ladsous was
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
of France,
refuting those
who opposed
France helping
the
genocidaires
to escape into
Eastern Congo.
That's not a
slur - that's
a fact.
On May
3, Inner City
Press asked
the question
again at the
noon briefing,
along with
asking if new
envoy Mary
Robinson was
looking into
any
follow-through
on the Minova
rapes. Inner
City Press put
the question
to the Office
of the High
Commissioner
for Human
Rights as
well.
On
Friday
afternoon, the
following came
in:
Subject:
Your
question on
the DRC
From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
[at] un.org
Date: Fri, May
3, 2013 at
3:39 PM
To:
Matthew.Lee
[at]
innercitypress.com
We
have the
following from
MONUSCO:
"In
carrying out
their
investigations
on allegations
of human
rights
violations,
including
sexual and
gender-based
violence, UN
Human Rights
Officers are
guided by
strict
guidelines and
basic
principles
that must be
followed at
all times.
Such
principles
include 'do no
harm', meaning
that the
safety and
best interest
of the victim
always have to
be
prioritized,
the right of
victims to
privacy and
confidentiality
and the
informed
consent of the
victims prior
to sharing
information
with a third
party.
Psychological
and physical
consequences
of sexual and
gender-based
violence are
also taken
into account
by UN
investigators
in the process
of preparing
and conducting
human rights
investigations,
and thus such
investigations
are regularly
coordinated
with various
partners with
medical and
psycho-social
expertise.
The UN
Mission in the
Democratic
Republic of
the Congo,
MONUSCO, is
concerned
about some
inaccuracies
contained in
La Croix
article,
including
mention to the
fact that,
under
Congolese law,
medical staff
is allowed to
refuse to
disclose
information to
judicial
authorities in
the context of
a criminal
investigation.
This is
false."
The
two paragraphs
-- privacy and
compulsory
provision of
medical
information --
are
contradictory.
Given Ladsous'
months' long
refusal to
answer Press
questions
about the
Minova rapes,
it is
difficult to
know how to
assess the
Mission under
his control's
allegation of
falsity. But
we'll try.
Watch this
site.
, 
