French wrote to thank UN worker for disclosing abuse by troops

Authorities sent letter to whistleblower Anders Kompass, who faces dismissal from UN for leaking report into claims of child abuse by French troops in Africa

The Guardian, Sandra Laville, Friday 1 May 2015

French authorities wrote to Anders Kompass last July, shortly after he disclosed to
 them details of alleged child sex abuse by peacekeeping troops in the Central African
Republic. Photograph: Orlanda Sierra/AFP/Getty Images

French authorities sent a letter of thanks to the UN whistleblower who passed on details of the alleged of abuse of children by its troops in Africa, the Guardian can reveal.

The official, Anders Kompass, has been suspended by the UN and faces dismissal for what the organisation says is a “breach of protocols” in releasing a confidential internal UN document.

Sources close to the case say Kompass, director of field operations for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, disclosed the report to the French because of the UN’s failure to act quickly to stop the abuse identified in their own internal report.

Hinting that the allegations represented just a fraction of what had taken place, a UN spokesman said on Friday “it is possible, it’s horribly possible” that more allegations of sexual abuse of children by French and other soldiers in the Central African Republic could come to light.

As Kompass fights for his job, it emerged on Friday that the French were grateful for the disclosure of the report detailing interviews with children as young as eight or nine who describe sexual abuse at the hands of its peacekeepers.

The French mission was not under the direct control of the UN, but run by the French authorities. The abuse was identified by the UN in an internal report commissioned after reports on the ground that children were being abused.

The letter from the French expressed gratitude for Kompass’s actions. It read: “Dear director, Thank you for the information you have shared with my government concerning Operation Sangaris in the Central African Republic.

“The information is receiving the full attention of the authorities. Given the seriousness of the allegations and the necessity to check the veracity of them, it was immediately decided to launch a judicial inquiry which will determine what subsequent steps will be taken, including possible criminal proceedings. In addition, a command disciplinary investigation has been ordered without delay, under the responsibility of the defence staff.”

The letter, signed by the French permanent representative in Geneva, was sent to Kompass at his UN office on 30 July last year, shortly after he sent the report to the French mission.

It is understood the letter was logged in the OHCHR official correspondence register on 5 August – suggesting his employers were aware of his actions.

Eight months later, however, Kompass was told he was being suspended and was under investigation for breaching strict protocols on the release of confidential information.

The UN has failed to say when or if it officially passed on the report detailing the sexual exploitation of the children to the French for them to take action.

On Friday the OHCHR repeated its assertion that Kompass was not a whistleblower but had “breached strict protocols.”

The UN spokesman said: “This investigation concerns the manner in which confidential information, and especially the identities of child victims and witnesses, as well as of the investigators, was communicated to external actors in possible breach of strict rules that exist to protect victims, witnesses and investigators.”

On Thursday, the French president, François Hollande, promised to show “no mercy” if the allegations against French troops were found to be true.

As the investigation by the French continued, Bea Edwards, of the Government Accountability Project, which provides advocacy for whistleblowers, said the UN was wrong to say Kompass was not a whistleblower.

Under their own protocols, she said, his actions were a whistleblower disclosure to law enforcement about abuse by troops authorised by UN Security Council Resolution 2127 to deploy to the CAR.

“His transmission of criminal allegations to French authorities meets the conditions permitting the external disclosure of wrongdoing,” said Edwards. “These include that the allegations represented violations of international law, as well as an imminent and ongoing danger to the public health and safety and that there was no personal benefit accrued to the whisteblower.”