PRESS CONFERENCE ON UN PEACEKEEPERS’ REPORTED SEXUAL ABUSE OF CHILDREN

Jane Holl Lute, Assistant-Secretary-General for Field Support, today labelled as “important” a report claiming that sexual violence perpetrated against children by United Nations peacekeepers went largely under-reported, saying it sent a strong message that more leadership was needed to safeguard minors in countries with a significant peacekeeping presence.

Speaking at a Headquarters press conference, Ms. Lute said the report by the non-governmental organization Save the Children (UK) -– “No One to Turn To:  The under-reporting of child sexual exploitation and abuse by aid workers and peacekeepers” -- even if mostly anecdotal, was an “important statement and picture” of the murky situation surrounding sexual abuse of minors in places being served by United Nations personnel.

“Save the Children has been an effective partner with us in bringing their perspective -- which is different from our own -- to this problem,” she said, voicing agreement with its call for a better reporting mechanism for victims.  “We need to work with community leaders so that children and those who are abused can come forward in safety.”

Ms. Lute also stressed the importance of maintaining good order and discipline among peacekeepers, noting that good leadership was of key importance in reducing instances of child sexual exploitation and abuse among mission personnel.

“We do not believe that it is plausible for anyone to claim that they do not know what the standard is.  We need to intensify our ‘responsibilizing’ of leadership in the field,” she said, adding:  “If I’m the head of a peacekeeping mission, I consider it my responsibility to ensure good order and discipline, and to follow through when serious allegations are made, and to get to the bottom of it.”

Asked what action peacekeeping heads had taken to strengthen adherence to that responsibility, Ms. Lute said the United Nations had chosen to tackle the issue through more training.  “People [are required] to be trained to certain standards and to understand their personal responsibilities.  We’ve been training leaders at all levels.  We’ve been engaging with troop contributing countries so the message of leadership is brought home to them.”  Continuous sensitivity training was also important among the rank and file as certain missions received new troops as frequently as every six months.

Ms. Lute noted that the General Assembly had recently adopted an accountability mechanism calling on Member States to assign the same standards of criminality to behaviour undertaken by nationals abroad as they would at home, and to report to the Secretary-General on actions taken to curb bad behaviour.  But such a mechanism also gave Member States important rights of sovereignty over the discipline of their soldiers, meaning that the United Nations did not have complete control over all of those who fell under the purview of peacekeeping operations.

Nevertheless, there had been cases in which some units were “rotated out” when their good order and discipline had come into question, she said, adding that, in some cases, local leaders were themselves part of the problem by promoting a culture where sexual abuse against children was acceptable.  That led to a sense of resignation among victims.  Bringing perpetrators to justice was also difficult in countries where it was not illegal to have sex with those the United Nations considered “minors”.  Nonetheless, some Governments had gained cooperation in investigating reports of abuse and taking legal action against soldiers, a prime example being Sri Lanka.

She said the United Nations would look into the possibility of establishing a watchdog group, as suggested by Save the Children, since the Organization had “a role in this, as part of the broader community that cares about how children are treated”.  But it remained to be seen whether the watchdog would be embedded within the Organization or established outside it.  “I have no objections, and I know the leadership of peacekeeping has no objection, to others watching and holding us to account for what we say.”

Regarding queries about punishing troops responsible for the sexual abuse of minors -- who must be punished by their home countries rather than host authorities -- she said the United Nations was working on strengthening dialogue with Member States.  “It takes a while for this to be fully incorporated into people’s sensibilities and their behaviour.  We can’t let up.  We need to be vigilant.”

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For information media • not an official record