UN peacekeepers from Bangladesh and six other countries have been accused of sexual abuse in the Central African Republic (CAR).
The UN said 12 children in CAR have accused European soldiers and UN peacekeepers of sexual abuse, with one senior official saying such abuse was “rampant” there, reports Reuters.
UN Assistant Secretary-General for Field Support Anthony Banbury appeared emotional while announcing the new UN cases on Friday.
Six children accused UN troops from Bangladesh, Democratic Republic of Congo, Niger and Morocco and UN police from Senegal of sex abuse in CAR, the UN said.
Bangladesh and Morocco are investigating, while the UN is investigating the cases involving Democratic Republic and Niger after those states failed to respond to the allegations. The United Nations is investigating the Senegal case, in line with standard procedure involving police.
Moreover, six other children accused troops from France, Georgia and an unidentified European country of sexual abuse, said to have occurred mostly in 2014 in or near a camp for displaced people next to the airport in CAR’s capital Bangui. Those three countries and the European Union are investigating the accusations, the United Nations said.
When contacted, Md Noor Islam, assistant director of Inter Service Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate, yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune that they are investigating the allegation made by the United Nations against the Bangladeshi troops working in the UN peacekeeping mission.
“If any involvement in this regard is found, we will show zero tolerance.”