Impunity is just business as usual

Excerpt from a statement by Martina E. Vandenberg to the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law--Monday, March 26th, 2007

So the bottom line is impunity, but that is just really business as usual. I would like to skip now to the case of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is, perhaps, the poster child for impunity for defense contractors. Trafficking victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina, from Moldova, Ukraine, and other countries of the former Soviet Union had no idea that they would be trafficked into forced prostitution to serve trucker drivers, as well as peacekeepers, in Bosnia. 

In a 3-year investigation that I conducted for Human Rights Watch, researchers uncovered at least eight cases of U.S. personnel who allegedly purchased—purchased—trafficked women and girls as chattel. They purchased both their persons and their passports from local brothel owners. As in Iraq, the Department of Defense Inspector General confirmed that the allegations of trafficking were credible. In fact, their final report states "the evidence suggests that DoD contractor employees may have more than a limited role in human trafficking, but we were unable to gather more evidence of it precisely because there are no requirements and no procedures in place compelling contractors to gather such information regarding their employees, or to report it to US military authorities." That remains the case now years down the road.

Impunity remains rampant and continues to contribute to the spread and persistence of human trafficking. There is no excuse from private security contractors, military personnel, peacekeepers, humanitarian aid workers, or anyone else to get away with human trafficking and sexual abuse/exploitation of the populations they are supposed to be protecting. There is no excuse.

    

So why does the culture of impunity continue to reign? Why are we not doing more? These groups need to be held accountable for their actions, perhaps even more so because they are purportedly responsible for the protection and safety of the very people they are abusing. It is important to remember that most of these personnel do fulfill their duties with honor and faithfully follow the standards expected of them--but there is a minority that is committing gross violations of human rights, and this minority is tainting the group as a whole. This minority needs to be investigated, prosecuted, and held accountable for their crimes.

  

There is no excuse. More to come on this topic...