Sixth Committee
Criminal Accountability of United Nations officials and experts on mission
15 October 2007
Statement by Senator the Hon Rod Kemp, Parliamentary Adviser to the Australian Delegation to the United Nations
(As delivered)
Mr Chairman,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
CANZ remains deeply concerned about acts of sexual exploitation and abuse, and other serious crimes, committed by UN peacekeepers and other personnel. The impact of such crimes on the reputation of the United Nations, on the victim, on the host State and on the reputation of the offender’s State of nationality is so great that even one case of criminal conduct is one case too many. Given this, the United Nations and its Member States need to demonstrate to the international community the importance of eliminating impunity and holding personnel participating in United Nations operations accountable for any criminal conduct.
It is important to recall that the work of this Committee on the criminal accountability of UN officials and experts on mission is but one part of a broader UN response to this issue. We welcome the United Nations’ efforts to disseminate widely its zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse. We acknowledge the good work of the Secretary-General in establishing in 2003 the Bulletin on special measures for protection from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. We welcome the introduction since August 2005 of conduct and discipline teams in UN peacekeeping operations.
But when prevention fails, Member States and the United Nations share the responsibility to ensure that those who commit a crime are held accountable. We cannot tolerate impunity for serious crimes. We note the work of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations earlier this year in finalising revisions to the model MOU between the United Nations and Troop Contributing Countries to strengthen accountability for sexual exploitation and abuse offences for members of National Contingents.
Mr Chairman,
The Sixth Committee now needs to consider the appropriate measures to end impunity for criminal conduct by other UN personnel. CANZ recognises there is currently a jurisdiction gap that may lead to impunity. We recognise that the legal system in the host State will not always be in a position to prosecute crimes committed by UN personnel on their territory. Equally, the State of nationality of the alleged offender may not have jurisdiction over crimes committed in the host State.
In the long term, CANZ supports, in principle, the Secretariat’s call for a convention that requires Member States to exercise jurisdiction over their nationals who are participating in UN operations overseas. CANZ agrees that a convention would facilitate Member States being able to assert and exercise jurisdiction in such circumstances.
A convention could also provide a framework to facilitate international criminal cooperation, in particular, extradition and mutual legal assistance in criminal matters. This would enable States to investigate more effectively crimes allegedly committed by their nationals who are part of a UN operation.
Consistent with the overall objective of avoiding impunity, the UN’s response should not be limited to officials and experts on peacekeeping missions. We agree with the Secretariat that there is no major policy impediment as to why our response should be limited to peacekeeping operations. Rather, CANZ supports taking measures that apply to all UN personnel who are in the area of a United Nations operation irrespective of their Department, Office, Programme, Fund or Specialised Agency. However, there is no need to include military members of national contingents and military experts on mission, in as much as they are covered by their national and military laws.
The content of any new treaty would, however, require considerable further negotiation. As noted during the Ad Hoc Committee’s considerations in April this year, while the Group of Legal Experts has provided us with an excellent basis for our discussions, there are some aspects of the draft treaty text which it has presented which require further work. For example, we consider that to establish quasi-universal jurisdiction, under which any State in which an alleged offender is located is obliged to investigate and, where appropriate, prosecute him or her if it does not extradite that person, may be broader than is necessary to address the current problem.
Mr Chairman,
CANZ is aware that it will take time to negotiate any new treaty, yet there is an immediate need for the United Nations and Member States to take steps, and to be seen to be taking action, to end impunity for criminal conduct. CANZ welcomes the Secretariat’s recommendations in its recent note (A/62/329) and is supportive of the short term measures identified by the Secretariat to address the jurisdictional gap. In particular, CANZ supports adoption of a General Assembly resolution urging Member States to take action on this important issue.
Mr Chairman,
CANZ looks forward to participating actively in the Committee’s consideration of this important item over the coming weeks.
Thank you Mr Chairman.