The UNs Abu Ghraib....

[MKSheppard]

Linka

Sex scandal in Congo threatens to engulf UN's peacekeepers
By Jonathan Clayton and James Bone

HOME-MADE pornographic videos shot by a United Nations logistics expert in the Democratic Republic of Congo have sparked a sex scandal that threatens to become the UN’s Abu Ghraib.

The expert was a Frenchman who worked at Goma airport as part of the UN’s $700 million-a-year effort to rebuild the war-shattered country. When police raided his home they discovered that he had turned his bedroom into a studio for videotaping and photographing sex sessions with young girls.

The bed was surrounded by large mirrors on three sides, according to a senior Congolese police officer. On the fourth side was a camera that he could operate from the bed with a remote control.

When the police arrived the man was allegedly about to rape a 12-year-old girl sent to him in a sting operation. Three home-made porn videos and more than 50 photographs were found.

The case has highlighted the apparently rampant sexual exploitation of Congolese girls and women by the UN’s 11,000 peacekeepers and 1,000 civilians at a time when the UN is facing many problems, including the Iraqi “oil-for-food” scandal and accusations of sexual harassment by senior UN staff in Geneva and New York.

The prospect of the pornographic videos and photographs — now on sale in Congo — becoming public worries senior UN officials, who fear a UN version of the scandal at the American-run Abu Ghraib jail in Iraq. “It would be a pretty big problem for the UN if these pictures come out,” one senior official said.

Investigations have already turned up 150 allegations of sexual misconduct by peacekeepers and UN staff despite the UN’s official policy of “zero-tolerance”. One found 68 allegations of misconduct in the town of Bunia alone.

UN insiders told The Times that two Russian pilots based in Mbandaka paid young girls with jars of mayonnaise and jam to have sex with them.

They filmed the sessions and sent the tapes to Russia. But the men were tipped off and left the area before UN investigators arrived.

The Moroccan peacekeeping contingent based in Kisangani — a town on the Congo River with no road links to the outside world — had one of the worst reputations. A soldier accused of rape was apparently hidden in the barracks for a year.

In July 2002 the rebel commander Major-General Jean Pierre Ondekane, who subsequently became Minister of Defence in a postwar transitional government, told a top UN official that all that Monuc (the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo) would be remembered for in Kisangani was “for running after little girls”.

An international organisation examining the sex trade between Monuc and local women found that in March there were 82 women and girls who had been made pregnant by Moroccan men and 59 more by Uruguayan men.

According to UN insiders, at least two UN officials — a Ukrainian and a Canadian — have had to leave the country after getting local women pregnant.

Jordan’s Prince Zeid Raad Al Hussein, a special adviser to the UN Secretary-General, who led one investigative team, said in a confidential report obtained by The Times: “The situation appears to be one of ‘zero-compliance with zero- tolerance’ throughout the mission.”

Sexual exploitation and abuse mostly involves the exchange of sex for money (on average between $1 — 52p — and $3), for food — for immediate consumption or to barter — or for jobs, especially affecting daily workers, the prince’s report said.

In addition, victims spoke of incidents of rape, as well as “rape disguised as prostitution” where a girl was raped and then given money or food afterwards to give the appearance of a transaction having taken place.

Three civilian UN staff have already been suspended.

A man who worked for the UN’s investigative arm in Kinshasa has resigned after being accused of consorting with a prostitute.

The Frenchman with the homemade pornography accused of paedophilia was sent back to France in October and is in jail facing charges of sexually assaulting a minor.

“The fact that these things happened is a blot on us. It’s awful,” Jean-Marie Guehenno, the UN’s under-secretary-gen- eral for peacekeeping, said.

“What is important is to get to the bottom of it and fight it and make sure that people who do that pay for what they have done.”

The UN has now plastered its code of conduct on UN premises in Congo. The code forbids sex with prostitutes or women under the age of 18 — even though the Congolese age of consent is 14.

But the UN continues to hand out free condoms to peacekeepers because of the fear of Aids.

A second internal UN report, also obtained by The Times, detailed the extent of prostitution by “street girls” and “girlfriends” in Kisangani.

“One strategy is to find another UN staffer with a ‘girl friend’ and ask the girl if she knows a friend. She will usually be only too happy to comply and a more or less suitable candidate will be dispatched to the staff member’s house,” the report said.

Mireille Byongo, 20, a prostitute from Goma, said that she had had no problem gaining admission to the town’s UN barracks.

“The guys on duty at the entrance know why we have come,” she said. She said she had once gone to the tent of her Moroccan “boyfriend” and found him with a young girl aged “anything from 10 to 12”. Disgusted, she left.

“Never forget this is Heart of Darkness country. People do things here just because they can,” one female UN employee said, in a reference to Joseph Conrad’s novel about the abuses of the former Belgian Congo.

[Nieztchean Uber-Amoeba]

$3 for sex? Too bad they have STDs and murder up the wazoo.

Still, I doubt this will bubble into anything nearly as big as the Abu Ghraib scandal, since that involved America, and Iraq.

[Stuart Mackey]

The UN army is a disgrace its uniform, Dicipline int he UN army is appaling if this sort of thing is allowed to happen. The UN general should be sacked and court martialled...hang on..the UN dosent have an army...whoops.

[kheegster]

Unlike Abu Ghraib, the victims of the crimes are not under the custody of the UN (legally or otherwise), and the accused are clearly personally responsible of their crimes rather than being an abuse of their official power, as was the case in Abu Ghraib.

In any case, what do you expect from Third World peacekeepers whose countries were bribed to send them there because First World countries (cough, US, cough) couldn't give a damn about some hellhole in sub-Saharan Africa which doesn't have any strategic value.

[brianeyci]

Bottom line, the UN needs to get teeth. The only way for the UN to work is for countries to submit recruits that would be under the direct command, training and supervision of UN generals. Not this loaning third world countries uniforms bullshit.

Brian

[Sir Sirius]

When the police arrived the man was allegedly about to rape a 12-year-old girl sent to him in a sting operation.

If I am reading that right it says that the police sent him a 12-year-old as a part of a sting operation?!

[kheegster]

When the police arrived the man was allegedly about to rape a 12-year-old girl sent to him in a sting operation.

If I am reading that right it says that the police sent him a 12-year-old as a part of a sting operation?!

These are Congolese cops...they probably didn't even hesitate to think, 'Hmm...what if we make the bust just a few minutes late?'.

[Stuart Mackey]

Bottom line, the UN needs to get teeth. The only way for the UN to work is for countries to submit recruits that would be under the direct command, training and supervision of UN generals. Not this loaning third world countries uniforms bullshit.

Brian

Or relying on the firstworld nations either for that matter?There is the question of where these troops with be stationed,trained not to mention their language.
To whom are they accountable?
There is also the point that if the UN is to have an army to whom is the UN accountable?

[Falkenhayn]

In any case, what do you expect from Third World peacekeepers whose countries were bribed to send them there because First World countries (cough, US, cough) couldn't give a damn about some hellhole in sub-Saharan Africa which doesn't have any strategic value.

Why does America have to cough up the men? Why not the Germans, or the Swedes, or the Finns, or the Spanish, or the PRC? They all have capable, competent and currently underemployed militaries.

[Ma Deuce]

There is also the point that if the UN is to have an army to whom is the UN accountable?

I daresay it would be accountable to it's members (especially the United States, without whom the UN whould shrivel and die), who hold the UN's pursestrings. Not that I'd trust the UN to run a military force without strict oversight: it'd probably turn into a bloated, top-heavy clusterfuck.

[Montcalm]

There is also the point that if the UN is to have an army to whom is the UN accountable?

I daresay it would be accountable to it's members (especially the United States, without whom the UN whould shrivel and die), who hold the UN's pursestrings. Not that I'd trust the UN to run a military force without strict oversight: it'd probably turn into a bloated, top-heavy clusterfuck.

It couldn't be bigger than the Rwanda fuckups,sending soldiers then telling them not to shoot and let fucktards slaughter children and babies,plus the general in charge Romeo Dallaire let a group of soldier under his command get killed.

Well thats what i heard about the bolded part.

[LordShaithis]

In any case, what do you expect from Third World peacekeepers whose countries were bribed to send them there because First World countries (cough, US, cough) couldn't give a damn about some hellhole in sub-Saharan Africa which doesn't have any strategic value.

Why does America have to cough up the men? Why not the Germans, or the Swedes, or the Finns, or the Spanish, or the PRC? They all have capable, competent and currently underemployed militaries.

Because America has to do everything. Unless it's something everyone else doesn't like. Then we're TEH DEVAL!

[weemadando]

Despicable, though unfortunately the acts of individuals, not a nation or organisation as it seems the case was in Iraq.

Though it is nice of the VRWC to try to drag it that way...

[brianeyci]

It couldn't be bigger than the Rwanda fuckups,sending soldiers then telling them not to shoot and let fucktards slaughter children and babies,plus the general in charge Romeo Dallaire let a group of soldier under his command get killed.

WHAT A LOAD OF BULLSHIT Dallaire sent his MOST EXPERIENCED men in to secure the Prime Minister or President (don't remember which), and HIS MEN decided to give up their weapons to the Rwandans after negotiating.

Dallaire was outnumbered and sent a message to the UN for reinforcements and didn't get them. If Dallaire had fought, it would have been a slaughter, plus he would have been disobeying orders. The bullshit at the end about "Nobody would have blamed him if he had fought" was probably true, but like any good soldier Dallaire respected the chain of command. Too bad the guys on top were morons.

That's why the UN has to grow teeth and become a real military. The UN army if they make one should be run by experienced military generals, not by bureaucracy. Plus it should be independently run without the guys funnelling money in running the show but military brass whose goal is to prevent atrocities whenever they occur and deploy to protect aid workers. Well I can always dream (I know it will never happen, would be like saying France giving up its veto).

Brian

[MKSheppard]

Dallaire was outnumbered and sent a message to the UN for reinforcements and didn't get them.

That's fucking bullshit. African militaries are worthless. Dallaire could have
conquered Rwanda on his own with no support from anyone, and installed
himself as emperor for life.

[HemlockGrey]

IIRC, he was outnumbered by a huge margin and had no means of resupply.

[Stuart Mackey]

In any case, what do you expect from Third World peacekeepers whose countries were bribed to send them there because First World countries (cough, US, cough) couldn't give a damn about some hellhole in sub-Saharan Africa which doesn't have any strategic value.

Why does America have to cough up the men? Why not the Germans, or the Swedes, or the Finns, or the Spanish, or the PRC? They all have capable, competent and currently underemployed militaries.

Because America has to do everything. Unless it's something everyone else doesn't like. Then we're TEH DEVAL!

Oh dont be so silly. Nations only get involved in that concern them and little else. America is no different.

[brianeyci]

That's fucking bullshit. African militaries are worthless. Dallaire could have conquered Rwanda on his own with no support from anyone, and installed himself as emperor for life.

So he was supposed to conquer Africa with 270 guys?

There was a short period where UNAMIR had 2500 troops and there were a lot of special forces with heavy weapons evacuating their foreign nationals. The world lacked the will to act, reduced UNAMIR to 270 guys for four weeks. Or more accurately the US after the Somalia debacle. I'm surprised that its coming from you Shep I thought you would be all for a soldier obeying orders and doing the best he could.

Brian

[fgalkin]

In any case, what do you expect from Third World peacekeepers whose countries were bribed to send them there because First World countries (cough, US, cough) couldn't give a damn about some hellhole in sub-Saharan Africa which doesn't have any strategic value.

You mean third world countries like France, right?

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[MKSheppard]

So he was supposed to conquer Africa with 270 guys?

Do you have a reading comprehension problem? I said conquer Rwanda, not Africa, numbnuts.

And besides 270 men is much more than your usual mercenary-assisted
coup usually has in turd world countries.

[Elfdart]

Yeah, 270 men would have stopped the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of people by mobs and militias numbering in the tens of thousands. While you're at it, Mr. Savage Wiener Wannabe, tell us again how sheep bladders can be used to prevent earthquakes.

[brianeyci]

Do you have a reading comprehension problem? I said conquer Rwanda, not Africa, numbnuts.

I guess I was distracted by the "emperor for life" part. An emperor needs his continent.

And besides 270 men is much more than your usual mercenary-assisted coup usually has in turd world countries.

Brian

[fgalkin]

Do you have a reading comprehension problem? I said conquer Rwanda, not Africa, numbnuts.

I guess I was distracted by the "emperor for life" part. An emperor needs his continent.

Name one emperor who has ruled over a continent.

And besides 270 men is much more than your usual mercenary-assisted coup usually has in turd world countries.

Brian

Brilliant response.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[Sea Skimmer]

Yeah, 270 men would have stopped the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of people by mobs and militias numbering in the tens of thousands. While you're at it, Mr. Savage Wiener Wannabe, tell us again how sheep bladders can be used to prevent earthquakes.

The vast majority of the slaughter in Rwanda was by people armed with nothing more then knifes and machetes, and even lesser weapons then that. Against that sort of opposition you don't need large numbers, you just need basic infantry skills and some jeeps.

[brianeyci]

How do you hold ground with only 270 men? Are people honestly suggesting that Dallaire should/could have gone rambo on the insurgency? Anyway, from here,

As the death toll mounted, General Dallaire submitted a detailed plan for a Rapid Reaction Force. He needed 5,000 soldiers to dismantle the killing machine of the genocidaire and to stop the Hutu power movement. The UN Security Council rejected the plan. The United States even refused to acknowledge the genocide to avoid any legal obligations to help.

With all due respect to the members of this board who are knowledgeable and serve in the armed forces, why should I believe that 270 men could have done something when a General at the time submitted a request for 5000 men to stop the killing? Dallaire's men had insufficient ammunition, no heavy equipment, no APC's, and were living on survival rations. If they had stood their ground or tried to intefere it would have been a slaughter. There was a short window of opportunity as I mentioned when there were 1500 special forces and military from around the world evacuating their nationals, and if those along with the 2500 troops UNAMIR already had on the ground were given the right orders, they could have prevented the slaughter. Instead the force was cut to 270 guys (around 400 in practise).

Dallaire's 400 guys were stuck in the capitol protecting 15,000 civilians from being massacred in the UN Compound. He sent repeated requests up the chain of command for reinforcements and equipment, and the world was slow to act, especially the US and the security council,

Repeated attempts by Boutros-Ghali and members of the Security Council to request reinforcements for UNAMIR were blocked by Madeleine Albright the United States’ representative who refused to describe what was happening in Rwanda as “genocide”, saying only that “acts of genocide” may have taken place, an important legal distinction. Boutros-Ghali later wrote: “The behavior of the Security Council was shocking; it meekly followed the United States’ lead in denying the reality of the genocide.

Blaming the genocide on one of Canada's national heroes is petty and retarded when he was doing his job and others who had the power to act did not.

Brian