The United Nations has awarded Sri Lankan peacekeepers serving in South Sudan with medals although they have a history of egregious human rights abuses at home and abroad.
On October 17, 17 officers and 48 Other ranks from the Sri Lankan contingent received medals "in recognition of their dedicated service."
In 2007, over 100 Sri Lankan peacekeepers were implicated in a child sex ring in Haiti. Sri Lankan troops were accused of exchanging food and money for sex with girls and boys as young as 12. While most of the accused were repatriated, none have been criminally prosecuted.
The Sri Lankan military also stands accused of a litany of war crimes, particularly towards the end of the armed conflict where they deliberately shelled hospitals, food distribution lines and other humanitarian objects, killing tens of thousands of Tamils.
15 years later, no one has been held accountable for the Tamil genocide that culminated in May 2009.
In his latest report, the UN High Commissioner Volker Türk called on states to consider various forms of vetting for Sri Lankan officials implicated in human rights violations, including the strict application of the UN human rights screening procedures for deployment to UN peacekeeping missions.
