Security Council Resolution 2272 (2016) [on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse by United Nations Peacekeepers and Personnel]

Requests the Secretary-General, when a particular troop-contributing country whose personnel are the subject of an allegation or allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse has not taken appropriate steps to investigate the allegation and/or when the particular troop- or police-contributing country has not held the perpetrators accountable or informed the Secretary-General of the progress of its investigations and/or actions taken, to replace all military units and/or formed police units of the troop- or police-contributing country in the United Nations peacekeeping operation where the allegation or allegations arose with uniformed personnel from a different troop- or police-contributing country, as applicable and further requests the Secretary-General to ensure that the replacement troop- or police-contributing country has upheld standards of conduct and discipline and appropriately addressed allegations against or confirmed acts, if any, of sexual exploitation and abuse by its personnel;

Requests the Secretary-General to gather and preserve evidence ahead of investigations of sexual exploitation and abuse in United Nations peace operations with due consideration for the safety, security and confidentiality of victims, to ensure that the concerned United Nations peace operation takes immediate steps to prevent, including through risk assessments, future incidents of sexual exploitation and abuse, to strengthen the accessibility, coordination and independence of processes for complaint receipt and management and to assist victims, including by maintaining confidentiality, helping to minimize trauma and facilitating access, as appropriate, to immediate care, medical and psychological support;

Urges all non-United Nations forces authorised under a Security Council mandate to take adequate measures to prevent and combat impunity for sexual exploitation and abuse by their personnel;

Calls upon Member States deploying non-United Nations forces authorized under a Security Council mandate to take appropriate steps to investigate allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse, hold perpetrators accountable and repatriate units when there is credible evidence of widespread or systemic sexual exploitation or abuse by those units;

Urges all Member States to take concrete steps aimed at preventing and combating impunity for sexual exploitation and abuse by members of United Nations peace operations;

Urges all troop-contributing countries to take the steps necessary to conduct investigations of allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by their personnel and to conclude such investigations as expeditiously as possible, in line with the Secretary-General’s request, further urges all troop- and police-contributing countries to take appropriate steps to hold accountable those personnel responsible for sexual exploitation and abuse and to report to the United Nations fully and promptly on actions undertaken and welcomes the request by the Secretary-General for troop- and police-contributing countries to deploy national investigation officers in their contingents to support these efforts;

Encourages the appropriate United Nations mechanisms, including those related to Children and Armed Conflict, Women, Peace and Security and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, to continue to include allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse in their regular reporting to the Secretary-General and calls upon the Secretary-General to immediately inform the concerned Member State about any such allegations and to take steps to improve internal information-sharing within the United Nations regarding allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse.