3 Victims’ Rights and Remedial Action
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Sabrina White
Abstract
This chapter traces the emergence of victim and survivor support mechanisms in protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA), particularly through strategies and practices on remedial action from the 1990s to 2023. Remedial action, which centres on the response to allegations, constitutes the third prong of the United Nations’ (UN’s) long-standing strategy on PSEA (the first and second being prevention and enforcement of the zero tolerance policy). The remedial action response evolved through the development of the UN’s integrity system for PSEA. It has aligned more closely with victims’ rights frameworks following a series of public scandals in 2015. Yet many old challenges remain. Responses that inadequately address factors constraining victims’ access to justice and assistance – including political priorities, organizational reluctance, investigative capacity, resourcing and donor expectations – limit the protection of victims’ and survivors’ rights.
Abstract
This chapter traces the emergence of victim and survivor support mechanisms in protection from sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA), particularly through strategies and practices on remedial action from the 1990s to 2023. Remedial action, which centres on the response to allegations, constitutes the third prong of the United Nations’ (UN’s) long-standing strategy on PSEA (the first and second being prevention and enforcement of the zero tolerance policy). The remedial action response evolved through the development of the UN’s integrity system for PSEA. It has aligned more closely with victims’ rights frameworks following a series of public scandals in 2015. Yet many old challenges remain. Responses that inadequately address factors constraining victims’ access to justice and assistance – including political priorities, organizational reluctance, investigative capacity, resourcing and donor expectations – limit the protection of victims’ and survivors’ rights.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Figures and Tables v
- List of Abbreviations vi
- Notes on Contributors vii
- Acknowledgements xiv
- Introduction: Two Decades of Dealing with Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in Peacekeeping and Aid 1
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Where We’ve Been: The Origins and Scope of Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
- Reflections on 20-Plus Years of Protection from SEA Work 19
- United Nations Police as a Double-Edged Sword for SEA Accountability 34
- Victims’ Rights and Remedial Action 46
- Sexual Violence against Peacekeepers and Aid Workers 62
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How It’s Going: Implementing and Institutionalizing Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
- Missing the Mark in PSEA 79
- The Imperative of Prioritizing Victims’ Rights 93
- United Nations Victims’ Rights Statement 108
- Accountability Advocates: Representing Victims 114
- Masculinities and Institutional Blind Spots 130
- Power, Consent and Peacekeeping Economies 143
- Gender, Race, Sexuality and PSEA 156
- ‘We Don’t Have a Word for That’: Issues in Translating PSEA Communication 169
- From ‘Cultural Sensitivity’ to ‘Structural Sensitivity’ 184
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Looking Forward: Where to from Here?
- Agency and Affect in PSEA: Understanding Agency through a Transnational Intersectional Lens 195
- Empowered Aid: Transforming Gender and Power Dynamics in the Distribution of Humanitarian Aid 207
- Rethinking PSEA: Reflections for Policy Makers 221
- Notes 226
- Index 231
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Figures and Tables v
- List of Abbreviations vi
- Notes on Contributors vii
- Acknowledgements xiv
- Introduction: Two Decades of Dealing with Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in Peacekeeping and Aid 1
-
Where We’ve Been: The Origins and Scope of Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
- Reflections on 20-Plus Years of Protection from SEA Work 19
- United Nations Police as a Double-Edged Sword for SEA Accountability 34
- Victims’ Rights and Remedial Action 46
- Sexual Violence against Peacekeepers and Aid Workers 62
-
How It’s Going: Implementing and Institutionalizing Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
- Missing the Mark in PSEA 79
- The Imperative of Prioritizing Victims’ Rights 93
- United Nations Victims’ Rights Statement 108
- Accountability Advocates: Representing Victims 114
- Masculinities and Institutional Blind Spots 130
- Power, Consent and Peacekeeping Economies 143
- Gender, Race, Sexuality and PSEA 156
- ‘We Don’t Have a Word for That’: Issues in Translating PSEA Communication 169
- From ‘Cultural Sensitivity’ to ‘Structural Sensitivity’ 184
-
Looking Forward: Where to from Here?
- Agency and Affect in PSEA: Understanding Agency through a Transnational Intersectional Lens 195
- Empowered Aid: Transforming Gender and Power Dynamics in the Distribution of Humanitarian Aid 207
- Rethinking PSEA: Reflections for Policy Makers 221
- Notes 226
- Index 231
