China supports the United Nations Secretariat in pursuing the zero-tolerance policy on UN peacekeepers' misconduct of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and supports the international community in adopting relevant measures, said a Chinese envoy on Thursday.
Liu Jieyi, China's permanent representative to the United Nations, made the remarks at a Security Council meeting on UN peacekeeping operations SEA problem.
The UN peacekeepers have made significant contribution to world peace and security, but a handful of them are alleged of misconduct of sexual exploitation and abuse, said Liu, adding that this misconduct has seriously undermined the reputation of peacekeeping operations and tarnished the image of United Nations.
Liu said relevant parties including the Security Council, the UN Secretariat, and troop-contributing countries should strengthen cooperation, fully implement zero-tolerance policy to fight the problem of SEA, and bring the perpetrators to justice.
He said relevant parties should pay great attention to preventing sexual exploitation and abuse, and to take comprehensive measures in every link of the deployment of peacekeeping operations.
"It is necessary to raise sense of law-binding and disciplining of UN peacekeepers and strengthen adminiatration and management to ensure that SEA is a red-line that should never be overstepped," he added.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has presented his annual report on special measures on protection from sexual exploitation and abuse. The report shows that the total number of sexual exploitation and abuse recorded in 2015 for the UN system was 99, and 69 of them took place in countries where peacekeeping operations are deployed.
