PEACEKEEPERS AS PERPETRATORS OF ABUSE

I am afraid there is clear evidence that acts of gross misconduct have taken place. This is a shameful thing for the United Nations to have to say, and I am absolutely outraged by it.

—Kofi Annan, United Nations Secretary-General

Despite promulgating a comprehensive set of guidelines to deter UN personnel from committing acts of sexual misconduct, allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse have become widespread within United Nations peacekeeping missions. The policy of zero-tolerance for peacekeeper misconduct has not been matched by strong disciplinary measures, and crimes are often ignored and rarely punished: absentee fathers, rapists and murderers simply disappear back in their home countries. In countries where women and children rarely have the same economic resources, political rights and authority or control over their environment—or their bodies—they easily become prey for those in perceived positions of power and authority. By failing to hold those responsible to account, the UN may in fact be fuelling even greater discrimination and violence against women and children. In order to ensure those who are mandated to protect to do not become perpetrators of abuse, the UN must take a stronger stand against those who commit acts of sexual misconduct, and must ensure that victims see that their abuser is brought to justice and that reparation is offered. A recent report submitted by the Secretary-General's Special Envoy on Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse makes a comprehensive set of recommendations to prevent, detect, and respond to these allegations. The aim of this essay is to highlight some of the main points of the Special Envoy's report, and to examine the practical challenges the UN and troop/police contributing countries will face when attempting to implement these recommendations.     

Outsourcing the prosecution of Somali pirates to Kenya

There has been a failure by the international community to establish an effective system of prosecution for the trial of captured Somali pirates. This failure is in part due to the inability of the United States and by developed countries in Europe to carry out their responsibility as prescribed under international laws dealing with the prosecution of captured pirates. Owing to domestic political pressures, it has become politically expedient to outsource the trial of captured Somali pirates to Kenya and other developing countries in the East African region. By the end of 2009, Kenya had signed six memoranda of understanding with Canada, China, Demark, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. Kenya has become the single largest destination for the trial of captured Somali pirates whose victims are not Kenyans; the attacked vessels do not fly the Kenyan flag, the attacked ships are not managed by Kenyans and the crimes did not occur in Kenya's territorial waters. Outsourcing as constructed, conceived and implemented at present is morally and legally wrong. It has left a weak and poor country to shoulder the responsibility of the international community. This paper examines the reasons for outsourcing and its implications for Kenya.     

试论转化型抢劫罪的认定标准

在司法实践中,由盗窃、诈骗、抢夺转化为抢劫的刑事犯罪是一类比较典型的犯罪,其典型性主要体现为其犯罪性质已由盗窃、诈骗、抢夺转化为抢劫。现行刑法典第269条规定:“犯盗窃、诈骗、抢夺罪,为窝藏赃物、抗拒抓捕或者毁灭罪证而当场使用暴力或者以暴力相威胁的,依照本法第二百六十三条的规定定罪处罚,”根据这一规定,上述犯罪应以抢劫罪论处。笔者认为,在司法实务中适用本条来处理案件时,要真正理解本条的立法原意,并正确把握转化型抢劫罪严格的适用条件。这在实践中具有十分重要的意义。本文结合实践,对刑法典第269条转化型抢劫罪的适用条件等问题作一初步探讨。     

Place–time correlation of robbery incidents in metropolitan Lagos: a Mantel index analysis

This article investigates the correlation of space and time in the clustering of robbery incidents in metropolitan Lagos. Analysis was carried out on 781 selected robbery incidents in 2013. Using the Mantel index to correlate place and time intervals for pairs of robbery incidents, the results show that robberies are respectively concentrated in residential areas, transport nodes and public places, peaking at midnight during weekdays. The results further show that this concentration is most likely greater than what would be expected on the basis of a chance distribution. The study concludes that various factors may exist which cause clusters of robberies to occur in these places at these times.