UN to Charge Sri Lankan SF involved in Sex Scandals in Haiti

Colombo - The UN is to charge 114 Sri Lankan Security Forces (SF) who were on peace-keeping missions with sexual exploitation and abuse against children, according to the Sunday Times weekend report in Sri Lanka.

The UN's Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) says it is assisting in the pending legal proceedings initiated by the Sri Lankan Government, to ensure that all military members found guilty, according to Sri Lankan law, ‘are held accountable for their actions.’ The UN says charges should include rape - because it involves children under 18 years of age - which constitutes a ‘war crime’ in the context of military conflicts.

Sri Lankan government has assigned at least 950 Sri Lankan forces to the United Nations peace keeping duties in various part of the world. 108 Sri Lankan soldiers serving in the U.N. peacekeeping force in Haiti allegedly involved in sex scandals. Since UN has zero tolerance regarding the policy, UN asked the 108 Sri Lankan soldiers to return home after a preliminary investigation found that they paid for prostitutes, including some who might be underage, the United Nations said in lat November.

The Sri Lankan military has said the soldiers could face severe punishment if they are found guilty. Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara, a military spokesman, said: "If they are proved guilty, the maximum punishment will be given according to the Sri Lankan law and military law."