Reply #405: yes, of course there are worse scandals, much worse scandals...

[cantwealljustgetalong]

most of which don't and won't ever see the light of day, and so, however low you consider the UN, you are still being generous...


Explicit Photos Fan U.N. Sex Scandal
The French staffer they implicate says that the Congo mission harbors a pedophile network.


UNITED NATIONS — A scandal about the sexual abuse of Congolese women and children by U.N. officials and peacekeepers intensified Friday with the broadcast of explicit pictures of a French U.N. worker and Congolese girls and his claim that there was a network of pedophiles at the U.N. mission in Congo.

ABC News' "20/20" program showed pictures taken from the computer of a French U.N. transport worker. The hard drive reportedly contained thousands of photos of him with hundreds of girls. In one frame, a tear can be seen rolling down the cheek of a victim.

...

Bourguet's case is the only one that has been prosecuted among 150 allegations against about 50 soldiers and U.N. civilian officials who have served in the Congo peacekeeping mission. At least seven cases of sexual exploitation and abuse have been documented against peacekeepers based in Bunia, a northeastern town. One civilian has been suspended until the investigation is complete, and another has resigned. The U.N. is conducting further investigations and expects to find more cases.

...

The harsh new measures also illuminate how difficult the problem has been to solve and the challenges ahead. A report by U.N. investigators last summer noted that there had been "zero compliance" with the "zero- tolerance" policy instituted in October 2003, and that peacekeepers had traded favors with colleagues to withhold reports of policy violations.

The U.N. has no power to prosecute peacekeepers or civilians. The organization can only repatriate individuals and waive their immunity so they can face trial at home. Whether they are punished depends largely on the politics and culture of their home country, and U.N. officials acknowledge that they have been lax in following up cases.

...

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-unsex12feb12,1,308473.story?coll=la-headlines-world&ctrack=1&cset=true