VIII. Conduct of personnel of the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Excerpts from the Sixteenth report of the Secretary-General on the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
S/2004/1034
31 December 2004

65. MONUC and the United Nations Secretariat continue to follow up vigorously on allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse. Between June and September 2004, an Office of Internal Oversight Services investigation into sexual misconduct in Bunia revealed that 8 of some 72 allegations could be corroborated. The majority of these allegations pertain to soliciting the services of prostitutes, which is a violation of the code of conduct. All of these cases are being followed up to ensure that the proper disciplinary action is taken.

66. In November, a Department of Peacekeeping Operations/Office of Human Resources Management team was dispatched to MONUC to look into specific allegations made against several civilian personnel in other areas of the Mission, who had earlier been suspended pending further investigations. The team is currently finalizing its report. In the meantime, the first elements of a larger team, headed by the Assistant Secretary-General for General Assembly and Conference Management, Angela Kane, have been deployed to the country. The team, which includes highly specialized civilian police investigators, will address outstanding allegations against military and civilian personnel in MONUC. At the same time, MONUC and other United Nations partners are developing measures to provide immediate medical and psychosocial assistance to the victims of any abuses, while MONUC continues to implement a strong awareness campaign in the Mission.

67. As a result of these actions, a number of staff have been placed on suspension, pending the completion of investigations. In addition, an international civilian staff member was removed from the Mission in late October and is facing judicial hearings in his home country on charges of rape, sexual aggression, corruption of female minors and possession of pornographic pictures of female minors.

68. As a consequence of these deplorable events, an interdepartmental task force has been established at United Nations Headquarters to coordinate actions and responses to allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse against peacekeeping personnel and to address prevention, advocacy and long-term policy issues. I have made it clear that my attitude to sexual exploitation and abuse is one of zero tolerance, without exception, and I am determined to implement this policy in the most transparent manner. With this in mind, in July I requested the Permanent Representative of Jordan, Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein, to serve as my Adviser in addressing sexual exploitation and abuse committed by all categories of personnel in peacekeeping contexts. He visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo in October to gain a first-hand understanding of the nature of the problem and will continue to assist me in developing a comprehensive strategy to prevent and respond to exploitation and abuse not only in MONUC, but in all peacekeeping operations around the world.

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