UN mission in South ​Sudan probing sexual assault charges against Nepalese peacekeepers

UNITED NATIONS: The UN Mission in South Sudan said a teenage girl was touched inappropriately by a member of the Nepalese contingent in exchange for money and the matter is being probed as a case of sexual assault, noting that no allegation of rape has been made.

The UNMISS said that on April 13, four teenagers were caught trying to enter the United Nations base in Aweil in South Sudan through the perimeter fence.

It was alleged that one of the teenaged girls had been "touched inappropriately" by a member of the Nepalese contingent in exchange for money.

"There was no allegation made of rape," the UN mission said in a statement.

The UNMISS deployed a Sexual Exploitation and Abuse Immediate Response Team (IRT) to Aweil to gather information and preserve evidence prior to the launch of an investigation by Nepal.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters here yesterday that the allegations were initially reported on the UN website for Conduct in UN Field Missions as "including an allegation of rape" and this had been the interpretation made based on the information available at the time of posting.

However, now the matter is being investigated as sexual assault.

"The nature of the sexual activity has now been clarified and, therefore, the matter is being recategorised as sexual assault and attempted sexual assault, pending further information that may arise through the investigation," Dujarric said.

The UN spokesman had earlier said that any act of sexual abuse is "horrendous", in particular "one involving a child is especially heinous".

The UN has been informed that the Nepalese Government has appointed a national investigative team within the required timeframe of 90 days, as requested by the UN Secretariat.

"…Any information on allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse are reported as quickly as possible as part of the Secretary General's transparency initiatives," Dujarric said, adding that the investigation is ongoing and updates in the case could be available in the future.

As of March 2018, Nepal had 1710 troops and 344 police personnel deployed with the UNMISS.

The matter has also been reported to the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), an agency that is independent from UNMISS.

UNMISS said it has a zero tolerance, no excuses and no second chances approach to sexual exploitation and abuse.

"It is committed to putting the victims' rights and dignity first and ensuring that there is transparency and accountability for such actions," the UN mission said.

The allegation comes two months after 46 Ghanaian peacekeepers were recalled after some members allegedly paid local women living in a protection camp in the town of Wau for sex.