Word: sexualism
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...charitable organization Save the Children UK effectively blew the whistle on itself and other aid organizations on Tuesday by publishing findings that a number of aid workers and United Nations peacekeepers engage in sexual abuse of some of the world's most vulnerable children. Hundreds of cases of sexual misconduct with children ranging in age from six to 17 were reported in disaster and war-torn regions around the world. And according to the report, a far greater number of cases go unreported...
...majority of victims were "orphans, children separated from their parents and families, and children in families dependent on humanitarian assistance." Those children without familial support were most likely to not report abuse because of powerlessness and a fear of stigmatization in their community. The study included instances of verbal sexual abuse, coerced sex, child pornography and young children trading sexual favors for food, money, soap, and even mobile phones...
...Sexual misconduct accusations were leveled against employees of 23 international aid organizations, including Save the Children, the United Nations and the World Food Programme. The U.N. alone reported 371 cases of sexual abuse in 2006, sparking increased internal protocols, including field discipline teams, increased training and telephone reporting hotlines...
...most disturbing findings of the Save the Children study is that many abusers are never held to account for their actions. Of the 856 sexual misconduct allegations against U.N. personnel and peacekeepers between 2004 and 2006, less than 40% were resolved within the year the abuse was reported. In many cases, the suspected abusers were either fired from the organization or repatriated back to their country of origin. "In general the U.N. as a whole has a zero tolerance policy on this," says Michael Klaus, spokesman for UNICEF in Geneva. "If these cases are proven, those responsible are immediately fired...
...control over its peacekeepers is less clear. Without its own military force, the U.N. depends on troop contributors from 119 countries, which as of January 2008 deployed more than 80,000 blue-helmeted troops in international peacekeeping operations. The U.N. lacks the authority to prosecute any sexual offenders within those ranks. It can pass accused perpetrators over to local authorities, but in many cases, they decline to prosecute against an international actor for fear of retribution or losing aid. The U.N. can also repatriate a soldier to his home country, which can apply its own military justice procedure...