Kinshasa – Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary- General has on Thursday, declared “zero-tolerance” to sexual abuse and violations by UN peacekeepers deployed across the world.
Ban was speaking in Kinshasa after meeting with Congolese President Joseph Kabila and opposition political actors in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo).
He recalled that after several accusations of rape and sexual abuse against a contingent of DR Congo peacekeepers in Central African Republic, in January, the UN decided to withdraw Congolese peacekeepers from its peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic (MINUSCA).[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
The UN secretary- general declared,”I declare zero tolerance” to the issue of sexual abuse or violations by our troops, adding that the UN would conduct regular inquiries on allegations of violations and abuse.
The UN chief also noted that he had urged Congolese political class to embrace dialogue in order to organise peaceful elections in the country.
Kabila had called for inclusive dialogue to discuss the organisation of the forthcoming elections.
However, the opposition has refused to participate in the dialogue, describing it as a ploy by the president to extend his term beyond November 2016. (Xinhua/NAN)