Litigating peacekeeper child sexual abuse
Child sexual abuse by peacekeepers usually goes unpunished and few victims secure reparations. This is the main finding of the report Litigating peacekeeper child sexual abuse, produced jointly by REDRESS and CRIN, which examines the success of litigation in pursuing justice for victims by analysing cases in which victims and their representatives have turned to the courts to seek accountability and redress.
Almost 2,000 allegations, including 300 complaints involving children, were reported between 2004 and 2016, but troop-contributing countries have shown themselves largely unable or unwilling to prevent abuse, prosecute the perpetrators or provide redress to the victims. The UN’s role has also been criticised, prompting extensive internal reforms.
This report examines cases from Haiti, Sri Lanka, Uruguay, Pakistan and France. In not one of the cases examined did the victims receive the full reparations to which they were entitled, but instead met obstacles that prevented the perpetrators of peacekeeper child sexual abuse from being held to account, including:
Poor quality investigations;
Immunities and the exclusive jurisdiction of troop-contributing countries;
A lack of transparency in prosecution processes, particularly in military court martial processes;
The absence of a victim-centred approach; and
A failure to take the best interests of the child victims into account.
The report recommends a series of reforms to policies, practices and legislation in troop-contributing countries and the UN to remove these obstacles to accountability and redress. It also sets out proposals for strategic human rights litigation to address existing failings.