Forty-six UN peacekeepers from
Ghana have been recalled from their base in northwestern South Sudan
following allegations of sexual exploitation of women sheltering at the
site, a UN spokesman said Monday.
The 46 police were confined to
barracks in Juba on Saturday after a preliminary investigation showed
that the Ghanaians were "engaging in sexual activity with women" living
at a UN site to protect civilians in Wau, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric
said.
"The information received indicates
that some members of the formed police unit allegedly engaged in
transactional sex," he added.
The UN peacekeeping mission in South
Sudan has a "zero tolerance, no excuses, and no second changes approach
to sexual exploitation and abuse," he said.
Ghana is cooperating with the United
Nations to carry out a full investigation of the complaint received on
February 8, the spokesman added.
Under UN rules, it is up to
troop-contributing countries to take action against their nationals
accused of misconduct while serving under the UN flag, but the United
Nations carries out joint investigations with the national authorities.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
has vowed to toughen the UN response to allegations of misconduct
against the blue helmets whose mission is to protect vulnerable
civilians in conflict zones.
The United Nations has 7,000 troops
and 900 police in its UNMISS mission. About 200,000 South Sudanese are
sheltering at UN sites protected by UNMISS peacekeepers.
The world's youngest nation which
achieved independence from Sudan in 2011, South Sudan descended into war
in December 2013 when President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy
Riek Machar of plotting a coup.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed and nearly four million South Sudanese displaced from their homes.
AFP
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