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Whistleblower Protection as a Potential Piece of the Puzzle to End Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in UN Peacekeeping Operations

Rävås, Sara LU (2019) JURM02 20191
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
In 2014, Anders Kompass, a Swedish national working for the UN in Geneva, received a report of French peacekeepers exploiting and raping children in the Central African Republic (CAR). When Kompass handed over the report to France, in an attempt to stop the abuse, he was treated as a whistleblower and faced retaliation from the UN. The case of Anders Kompass is used as a case study to contextualize the two issues examined in this thesis: on the one hand the problem of sexual exploitation and abuse within the framework of UN peacekeeping operations, and on the other hand the treatment of persons reporting or taking action to end misconduct – i.e. whistleblowers.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine whether and how UN whistleblower... (More)
In 2014, Anders Kompass, a Swedish national working for the UN in Geneva, received a report of French peacekeepers exploiting and raping children in the Central African Republic (CAR). When Kompass handed over the report to France, in an attempt to stop the abuse, he was treated as a whistleblower and faced retaliation from the UN. The case of Anders Kompass is used as a case study to contextualize the two issues examined in this thesis: on the one hand the problem of sexual exploitation and abuse within the framework of UN peacekeeping operations, and on the other hand the treatment of persons reporting or taking action to end misconduct – i.e. whistleblowers.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine whether and how UN whistleblower protection can be part of the measures needed to end sexual exploitation and abuse in UN peacekeeping operations. This is done by examining the international responsibility of the UN for these acts and the role of UN whistleblower protection in that responsibility.

The instrument used to determine the responsibility of the UN is the International Law Commission’s (ILC) Draft Articles of Responsibility for International Organizations (ARIO). In establishing responsibility under ARIO, the act needs to be attributable to the UN and constitute a breach under international law. Three categories of peacekeepers are treated separately in this thesis. Attributability for the acts of the first two groups, UN staff and so-called experts – civilian police and military observers – is not difficult since they are considered organs and agents of the UN. The third group, consisting of UN military contingents, i.e. soldiers sent by UN Member States, is more complicated since the sending state retains some control and therefore some responsibility. Consequently, it needs to be determined if the acts are attributable to the UN or to the state. The determining factor is, in line with ARIO, who was exercising effective control over that specific conduct. Establishing responsibility for the acts of sexual exploitation and abuse is further complicated as these acts are typically taken in private capacity and are therefore not directly covered by ARIO. In addition to these aspects, the obligations of the UN relating to sexual exploitation and abuse are examined to find the second part of ARIO, namely a breach of international law. Finally, after a combined assessment, the general conclusion is that it is possible to establish responsibility of the UN for acts of sexual exploitation and abuse committed in UN peacekeeping operations, but that there are some hurdles on the way.

After determining the international responsibility of the UN in these cases, the role of whistleblower protection is examined in the context of that responsibility. It is found that whistleblower protection affects the likelihood of people reporting injustices and that the act of reporting is a factor in sexual exploitation and abuse being addressed and prevented. Therefore, it is concluded in this thesis that whistleblower protection is part of the UN’s responsibility to address and prevent acts of sexual exploitation and abuse committed by peacekeepers and that the current protection for whistleblowers is insufficient. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
År 2014 tog Anders Kompass, en svensk medborgare anställd för FN i Geneve, emot en rapport om franska fredsbevarande styrkor som utnyttjade och våldtog barn i Centralafrikanska republiken. När Kompass överlämnade rapporten till Frankrike, i ett försök att stoppa övergreppen, behandlades han som en visselblåsare och blev utsatt för vedergällning från FN. Fallet om Anders Kompass används som en fallstudie för att kontextualisera de två problem som undersöks i denna uppsats: å ena sidan problemet med sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp inom ramen för FN:s fredsbevarande styrkor, å andra sidan behandlingen av personer som rapporterar eller agerar mot oegentligheter – det vill säga visselblåsare.

Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka om... (More)
År 2014 tog Anders Kompass, en svensk medborgare anställd för FN i Geneve, emot en rapport om franska fredsbevarande styrkor som utnyttjade och våldtog barn i Centralafrikanska republiken. När Kompass överlämnade rapporten till Frankrike, i ett försök att stoppa övergreppen, behandlades han som en visselblåsare och blev utsatt för vedergällning från FN. Fallet om Anders Kompass används som en fallstudie för att kontextualisera de två problem som undersöks i denna uppsats: å ena sidan problemet med sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp inom ramen för FN:s fredsbevarande styrkor, å andra sidan behandlingen av personer som rapporterar eller agerar mot oegentligheter – det vill säga visselblåsare.

Uppsatsens syfte är att undersöka om och hur visselblåsarskyddet inom FN kan vara en del av de åtgärder som krävs för att få ett slut på det sexuella utnyttjandet och övergreppen inom FN:s fredsbevarande styrkor. För att uppnå syftet undersöks FN:s folkrättsliga ansvar för dessa handlingar samt vilken roll FN:s visselblåsarskydd har inom det ansvaret.

För att fastställa FN:s folkrättsliga ansvar används FN:s folkrättskommissions kodifiering av ansvar för internationella organisationer (Draft Articles of Responsibility for International Organizations (ARIO)). För att etablera ansvar enligt ARIO måste gärningen vara hänförbar till FN samt bryta mot internationell rätt. Tre olika kategorier av fredsbevarande styrkor behandlas åtskilda i denna uppsats. Att hänföra handlingar utförda av de första två grupperna, FN-anställda och så kallade experter – civila polisstyrkor och militära observatörer – är inte svårt då de anses vara organ och agenter under FN. Den tredje gruppen, så kallade militära kontingenter, det vill säga soldater som skickats av FN:s medlemsstater, är mer komplicerad eftersom den skickande staten behåller en del kontroll och därmed en del ansvar. Till följd därav behöver det avgöras om handlingen är hänförbar till FN eller till staten. Den avgörande faktorn är enligt ARIO vem som utövade effektiv kontroll över den aktuella gärningen. Att etablera ansvar för sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp är vidare komplicerat då dessa är typiskt sett privata gärningar och därmed inte direkt täckta av ARIO. Utöver ovanstående undersöks även FN:s möjliga förpliktelser kopplade till sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp för att hitta den andra delen av ARIO, närmare bestämt ett brott mot internationell rätt. Efter att ha undersökt dessa aspekter dras slutsatsen att det är möjligt att etablera FN:s ansvar för sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp som sker inom ramen för FN:s fredsbevarande styrkor, men att det finns ett antal hinder på vägen.

Efter att FN:s folkrättsliga ansvar i dessa fall har fastställts undersöks rollen av visselblåsarskydd inom ramarna för det ansvaret. Det konstateras att visselblåsarskydd påverkar sannolikheten att människor rapporterar orättvisor och att rapporteringen är en faktor i att sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp behandlas och förebyggs. Därmed är slutsatsen av denna uppsats att visselblåsarskydd är en del av FN:s ansvar att bemöta och förebygga sexuellt utnyttjande och sexuella övergrepp som utförs av fredsbevarande styrkor samt att det nuvarande skyddet för visselblåsare är otillräckligt. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Rävås, Sara LU
supervisor
organization
course
JURM02 20191
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
International law, international organizations, United Nations, whistleblower, whistleblower protection, Anders Kompass, sexual exploitation and abuse, ARIO, peacekeeping
language
English
id
8977183
date added to LUP
2019-06-19 17:17:10
date last changed
2019-06-19 17:17:10
@misc{8977183,
  abstract     = {{In 2014, Anders Kompass, a Swedish national working for the UN in Geneva, received a report of French peacekeepers exploiting and raping children in the Central African Republic (CAR). When Kompass handed over the report to France, in an attempt to stop the abuse, he was treated as a whistleblower and faced retaliation from the UN. The case of Anders Kompass is used as a case study to contextualize the two issues examined in this thesis: on the one hand the problem of sexual exploitation and abuse within the framework of UN peacekeeping operations, and on the other hand the treatment of persons reporting or taking action to end misconduct – i.e. whistleblowers. 

The purpose of this thesis is to examine whether and how UN whistleblower protection can be part of the measures needed to end sexual exploitation and abuse in UN peacekeeping operations. This is done by examining the international responsibility of the UN for these acts and the role of UN whistleblower protection in that responsibility.

The instrument used to determine the responsibility of the UN is the International Law Commission’s (ILC) Draft Articles of Responsibility for International Organizations (ARIO). In establishing responsibility under ARIO, the act needs to be attributable to the UN and constitute a breach under international law. Three categories of peacekeepers are treated separately in this thesis. Attributability for the acts of the first two groups, UN staff and so-called experts – civilian police and military observers – is not difficult since they are considered organs and agents of the UN. The third group, consisting of UN military contingents, i.e. soldiers sent by UN Member States, is more complicated since the sending state retains some control and therefore some responsibility. Consequently, it needs to be determined if the acts are attributable to the UN or to the state. The determining factor is, in line with ARIO, who was exercising effective control over that specific conduct. Establishing responsibility for the acts of sexual exploitation and abuse is further complicated as these acts are typically taken in private capacity and are therefore not directly covered by ARIO. In addition to these aspects, the obligations of the UN relating to sexual exploitation and abuse are examined to find the second part of ARIO, namely a breach of international law. Finally, after a combined assessment, the general conclusion is that it is possible to establish responsibility of the UN for acts of sexual exploitation and abuse committed in UN peacekeeping operations, but that there are some hurdles on the way.
 
After determining the international responsibility of the UN in these cases, the role of whistleblower protection is examined in the context of that responsibility. It is found that whistleblower protection affects the likelihood of people reporting injustices and that the act of reporting is a factor in sexual exploitation and abuse being addressed and prevented. Therefore, it is concluded in this thesis that whistleblower protection is part of the UN’s responsibility to address and prevent acts of sexual exploitation and abuse committed by peacekeepers and that the current protection for whistleblowers is insufficient.}},
  author       = {{Rävås, Sara}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Whistleblower Protection as a Potential Piece of the Puzzle to End Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in UN Peacekeeping Operations}},
  year         = {{2019}},
}