UN Secretary-General’s Chef de Cabinet, Edmond Mulet, late on Friday in New York, reaffirmed the UN’s determination to tackle the allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by UN peacekeepers, head on and said that such violations, if verified, would trigger a decision by UN chief to repatriate the units in question.
Mr. Mulet, who briefed UN member states on behalf of the UN Secretary-General, said that, since last June, reports of sexual exploitation and abuse have continued to come to light in the Central African Republic (CAR) and in other countries.
He said on 24 March, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) informed the UN Secretariat and the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) that it had received reports of sexual exploitation and abuse by UN and non-UN troops.
These acts are alleged to have been committed between 2013 and 2015 in Kemo prefecture. The information available so far indicates that there are more than 100 victims who have made allegations against both UN and non-UN forces,” he stated.
“Tragically, the vast majority of the victims are children,” he said, adding, however, that, “at this stage, these remain reports, which must be verified and investigated swiftly and professionally.”
The UN official said: “The UN member states have been advised that if there is credible evidence to support the reports, their number would constitute widespread or systemic sexual exploitation and abuse.”
He also noted that this would trigger a decision by the UN Secretary-General, under UN Security Council resolution 2272 (2016), to repatriate the units in question.
