[JURIST] UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein [official profile] on Friday called for [press release] increased accountability for criminal acts by international peacekeepers. While recognizing the gradual positive security developments over the past year, Zeid stressed the importance of further improvement, especially in those countries where armed groups are present. He indicated that the leaders of these groups are largely responsible for many human rights violations, yet are not held accountable for their actions. Zeid called for a united front of UN member states to address the urgency of the issue at hand by imposing punishment against offenders. The High Commissioner’s call to action follows his statement [JURIST report] yesterday that UN workers were informed on August 30 that a teenage girl in the Central African Republic (CAR) [BBC backgrounder] was allegedly sexually abused by a French soldier last year. That allegation followed an appointment [JURIST report] by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] of an independent panel to review the UN’s handling of allegations that French and African soldiers sexually abused children in CAR from December 2013 to June 2014.

Sexual abuse has been a serious issue in CAR and the rest of the world recently. In August Ban accepted the resignation [JURIST report] of the head of the CAR peacekeeping mission MINUSCA [official website] amid allegations of sexual exploitation committed by members of the peacekeeping force. In June, according to an unreleased report obtained by the Associated Press, some members of a UN peacekeeping mission engaged in sexual exploitation [JURIST report] with more than 200 Haitian women, telling them that they had to in order to obtain necessary food and medication. Also in June the Secretary-General announced [JURIST report] that in light of allegations of sexual abuse in the CAR by foreign troops not under UN control, an External Independent Review will be set up to examine the UN’s handling of such allegations. In May, Zeid called on [JURIST report] several states to investigate allegations that members of their peacekeeping forces sent to the CAR have committed serious human rights violations, including sexual exploitation.