Topic: 2025 – Criminal Accountability of UN Officials
Country: Germany
Delegate Name: Harnoor Bath
Legal
Criminal Accountability of UN Officials
Federal Republic of Germany
Harnoor Bath
Forest Hills Eastern High School
Criminal accountability of UN officials is a prevalent issue that has occurred throughout the UN. Globally, criminal accountability is a pressing issue because the existing legal and political problems and crimes have resulted in impunity. Malaysia has reported 11 cases of criminal acts, bringing the total to 342 offences committed since 2007. Though this has happened, organizations such as the Office of Internal Oversight Services have conducted investigations into misconduct in the system and provided insight into solutions. Criminal accountability within the United Nations is an important topic to address because it maintains credibility and integrity and ensures that UN officials are aware of their consequences. Learning from its complex past, Germany’s emphasis on criminal accountability stems from a history of unjust acts committed against civilians and righting what they have done wrong in the past. Due to this, Germany advocates global accountability of crimes through the International Criminal Court (ICC). Further, the United Nations established the Policy on Accountability for Conduct and Discipline in Field Missions to set out a framework to address misconduct in peacekeeping operations and political missions.
Germany is concerned with the effectiveness of criminal accountability. By reaffirming the UN policy on “zero-tolerance,” Germany regards misconduct by officials to ensure that there is no leniency. Germany, especially, is concerned with preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA). Since 1990, reports of approximately 2,000 allegations are known, many of which involved child victims. This is an important focus since sexual abuse is a current issue and degrades an organization’s integrity and relationship with communities. Because of this, Germany is a major contributor to the UN Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, making sure that victims are provided direct assistance such as medical care, psychological support, and legal services. Furthermore, we have urged all Member States to establish jurisdiction under their laws regarding crime. This guarantees that impunity is prevented by ensuring that certain UN officials abroad can be prosecuted for their crimes. Germany has implemented the Code of Crime to handle crime. They established the German Penal Code (Strafgesetzbuch (StGB)) to define criminal offenses such as theft, bodily harm, and homicide. For serious crimes, Germany’s Code of Crimes against International Law (Völkerstrafgesetzbuch (VStGB)) allows German courts to prosecute crimes such as genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression whether or not the official was within the nation or abroad. These many codes of conduct ensure that Germany handles crimes with integrity and aids the international system in improving how it handles these situations.
The Federal Republic of Germany encourages the United Nations to hold officials accountable for their actions and provide aid to the victims to ensure the integrity of the organization and keep good relations with local communities. Germany views the lack of criminal accountability as a pressing issue that can be solved by acknowledging the prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (SEA) and establishing jurisdiction. We see that the primary responsibility is held by the Member States and their thoroughness in investigating their nationals. Along with this, the UN should work with the Office of Legal Affairs (OLA) to conduct investigations and prosecutions, and the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) to investigate allegations of misconduct and criminal activity. Germany is willing to donate money to aid victims of misconduct and ensure that the United Nations views this pressing issue with urgency.
