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On
UN's "Zero Tolerance," Press
Questions UNanswered on Sri
Lanka, South Sudan, Blue on Blue
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Video
UNITED
NATIONS, March 13 --
Amid the UN's decade
long claim of “zero
tolerance” for
sexual abuse and
exploitation, on
March 13 a press
conference was
announced with
decade long, now
part-time, UN
official Jane Holl
Lute. Inner City
Press asked her why
the UN Peacekeeping
mission UNMISS has
denied South
Sudan's
request for a role
in investigating
alleged sexual abuse
of South Sudanese
IDPs in Wau by UN
Police from Ghana.
Video here.
Inner
City Press also
asked how
soldiers for example
from Sri Lanka are
vetted by the UN,
given a showing that
the four past
commanders sent from
Colombo to UNIFIL
had troubling war
records. Related
story here.
She
referred the UNMISS
question to her
Conduct and
Discipline Unit
colleague, who said
joint investigations
should be possible
under the model
Status of Forces
Agreement (certainly
news to Juba).
The
second question on
vetting wasn't
answered at all.
There was a third
question, which
Inner City Press
also put to
Secretary General
Antonio Guterres'
spokesman Stephane
Dujarric: how did
the UN investigate
the complaint by the
Bishop of Bangassou
in the Central
African Republic
that IDPs there were
sexually exploited
by UN “peacekeepers”
and some became
pregnant?
Dujarric
cited OIOS, the same
UN Office of
Internal Oversight
Services in which
the South Sudanese
government said it
has no confidence.
Dujarric added that
Guterres met the
Bishop during what
Inner City Press
dubbed, from a DPI
Town Hall meeting,
his “litmus
test” visit to
CAR.
In the
March 13 press
conference Inner
City Press asked if
Jane Holl Lute's
office (report here)
has jurisdiction
over alleged abuse
or exploitation by
UN officials against
UN staff or
contractors, as is
alleged at UNFPA
in India. Getting no
answer, Inner City
Press tried to
explain: blue on
blue SEA.
Jane
Holl Lute said she
doens't like - or
has zero tolerance
for - the term “blue
on blue.” But what
about the UNFPA
case? Or one was are
looking into
regarding UNHCR in
Sri Lanka under
Guterres? Watch this
site.
***
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