Protection in conflict and peacebuilding: some lessons from Bosnia-Herzegovina by Madeleine Rees

Protection in conflict and peacebuilding: some lessons from Bosnia-Herzegovina by Madeleine Rees published in the magazine of the Humanitarian Practice Network (HPN, Humanitarian Exchange 03/2003)

The international community has been loathe to deal with the involvement of peacekeepers in the sex trade,
even though the market they represent has been a key factor driving the expansion of exploitation. Bosnia
shows that simply sending guilty peacekeepers home is not enough; what is needed is a robust position from
the very moment of deployment. The international community needs to take its responsibilities seriously,
and not allow the immunity of international personnel to become impunity in practice. By early 2003, the majority of users were probably from the local community. Yet the international community has given insufficient support to government attempts to draw up and implement a national plan of action to combat trafficking and assist victims.