Sexual abuse scandal in Haiti

In November 2007, 114 members of the 950 member Sri Lankan Army peacekeeping mission in Haiti were accused of sexual misconduct and abuse.[1] 108 members, including 3 officers of the 950-member-strong Sri Lanka peacekeeping contingent, were sent back after being implicated in alleged misconduct and sexual abuse.[3]

Officials in Haiti have said that UN peacekeeping soldiers from Sri Lanka who had been accused of sex crimes in 2007 had even raped children as young as 7 years old.[4][5][6][7] The UN released a report slapping the Sri Lankan contingent with accusations of building a brothel in Martissant, Port-au-Prince charging them with systematic sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of minors, prostitution and rape.[7] "In exchange for sex, the children received small amounts of money, food, and sometimes mobile phones,” reported the OIOS, the UN's investigative arm.[8]

After inquiry into the case the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) has concluded, ‘acts of sexual exploitation and abuse (against children) were frequent and occurred usually at night, and at virtually every location where the contingent personnel were deployed.’ The OIOS is assisting in the pending legal proceedings initiated by the Sri Lankan Government and has said charges should include statutory rape "because it involves children under 18 years of age".[8]

The charges of sexual exploitation have been made against 114 members of the Sri Lankan armed forces who were serving as peacekeepers in the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti. They were part of a larger 950-member Sri Lankan contingent in the politically troubled Caribbean nation. Virtually all of the 114 troops were repatriated by 2007 November on ‘disciplinary grounds’. The repatriation, described as one of the biggest single withdrawals of soldiers from a UN peacekeeping mission, was done in close cooperation with the Sri Lankan Government. Three officers, a Lt. Colonel and two Majors who were Company Commanders, were withdrawn for failure to exercise command responsibilities in accordance with military norms and standards.

UN spokeswoman Michele Montas said: "The United Nations and the Sri Lankan government deeply regret any sexual exploitation and abuse that has occurred."[4] The Sri Lankan Officials claim that there is little tangible evidence on this case.[1]

Noted Haitian female activist Ezhili Danto alleges:

If only a dozen UN peacekeepers were punished for sexual abuse and rape, then that means, for instance, most of the 114 Sri Lankan soldiers deported back to Sri Lanka from Haiti in 2007 for sexual abuse and rape in Haiti did not get punished.

In March 2013, a fresh batch of 400 soldiers from the Sri Lankan Army's Sinha Regiment left for Haiti as part of the UN Peacekeeping mission.[9]

• United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti
• Sri Lankan Army