The UN has widened its investigation into allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by foreign peacekeepers in Central African Republic and has notified authorities in France, Gabon and Burundi about the charges.
A spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, said the world body had received further sexual abuse allegations on Monday against UN peacekeepers from Morocco and Burundi in Central African Republic (CAR), including one that involved a 14-year-old girl. The UN press office said on Wednesday a team led by the peacekeeping mission in CAR, known as Minusca, had travelled to Kemo prefecture to investigate.
“The exact number and nature of these extremely troubling allegations are still being determined. The team has identified the contingents in question as those provided by Burundi and Gabon,” the UN said.
“Allegations made against the French Sangaris forces in the same area are also being investigated,” the statement added. “Alleged victims are being interviewed and will be provided with assistance and psycho-social and medical support.”
A senior UN official met with Burundi’s ambassador, Albert Shingiro, and planned to meet with representatives of Gabon.
“Allegations are allegations,” Shingiro said. “We have to wait for investigation by a national team from next week. Our national policy on sexual abuse is zero tolerance.”
The UN said the Burundian and Gabonese units accused of involvement in the abuse would remain confined to their camps for the time being.
The French and Gabonese missions were not immediately available for comment. There have been dozens of such accusations against peacekeepers in CAR, where Minusca assumed authority from African Union troops in September 2014. France has been investigating allegations against the Sangaris force, which is not under UN command, since last year.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Code Blue Campaign run by the advocacy group Aids-Free World said the UN children’s fund, Unicef, recently interviewed 98 girls who alleged they had been sexually abused by international peacekeepers.
Code Blue said three alleged victims interviewed by Minusca reported that in 2014 “they and a fourth girl were tied up and undressed inside a camp by a military commander from the Sangaris force and forced to have sex with a dog”.
Reuters could not independently confirm the allegations.
The UN has pledged to crack down on sex abuse allegations to avoid a repeat of past mistakes. Minusca’s previous head, Babacar Gaye, resigned last August and about 800 Congolese peacekeepers were repatriated last month.
In December, an independent review panel accused the UN and its agencies of grossly mishandling allegations of child sexual abuse and rape by international peacekeepers in CAR in 2013 and 2014.
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