UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Parfait Onanga-Anyanga of Gabon to replace the ousted chief of the UN peacekeeping force in the Central African Republic, diplomats said Thursday
According to AFP, Ban Ki-moon informed Security Council members of his choice to replace Babacar Gaye of Senegal during a closed-door meeting called to discuss his decision to fire a mission chief
Babacar was sacked following a string of allegations of child sex abuse by peacekeepers serving in the MINUSCA force that have been deeply damaging to the United Nations.
The MINUSCA took over from African Union and has been plagued by several allegations involving its soldiers. There have been 57 claims of misconduct, 11 of which could be involving child sex abuse.
The latest allegations revealed by Amnesty International involve a 12-year-old girl who told witnesses that she was raped by a UN soldier during a search operation in the Muslim PK5 district of Bangui last week. AFP reported.
Ban in June appointed a review panel led by former Canadian Supreme Court justice Marie Deschamps to look into how the UN handled allegations that French and African troops sexually abused children in the Central African Republic beginning in late 2013.
The decision to sack a mission chief was described as “unprecedented” by the UN spokesman and a clear signal that the United Nations was moving to address mounting allegations of misconduct by the blue helmets.
In announcing Gaye’s resignation, Ban recalled that peacekeepers are entrusted with a mission to protect the most vulnerable and that he would not “tolerate any action by people who replace trust with fear.”
