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Sonke Gender Justice is outraged to learn that the South African National Defence Force soldiers on the MONUSCO peacekeeping mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo are involved in a scandal of alleged sexual abuse cases. The eight implicated soldiers have been recalled to South Africa as investigations take place. This is not the first time that the SANDF has been flagged for sexual abuse cases. The defence force’s soldiers deployed around the continent have been implicated in sexual exploitation and abuse cases ranging from rape, to taking advantage of women over the years, with about nine cases reported against South African peacekeepers in 2017 and four in 2018 respectively.
‘’We call for consequence management for these serious violations of protocols by our soldiers. The process must be managed transparently to ensure that the victims and public are kept informed on the measures that will be taken to ensure accountability. It is unacceptable, to have this repeat itself but also because they are placed there as peace keepers who are supposed to protect the interest of the already fragile and vulnerable communities and yet they abuse them’’ said Bafana Khumalo, Co-Executive Director of Sonke Gender Justice and Co-Chairperson of the Global MenEngage Alliance.
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