11 UN peacekeepers accused of sexual exploitation, abuse in Central African Republic

By JEAN FERNAND KOENA
Associated Press

BANGUI, Central African Republic (AP) — The United Nations said that 11 peacekeepers stationed in Central African Republic have been accused of sexual exploitation and abuse. A statement Friday from the peacekeeping mission said that preliminary evidence gathered by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services revealed that the members of a Tanzanian peacekeeping unit deployed in the country’s west, were implicated in the exploitation and abuse of four victims. The evidence also points to a breakdown in command and control over personnel and once the investigation is complete, the entire unit of 60 peacekeepers will be repatriated. The United Nations has long been in the spotlight over allegations of child rape and other sexual abuses by its peacekeepers.