Topic: 2025 – Criminal Accountability of UN Officials
Country: Switzerland
Delegate Name: Christian Boyce
Committee: Legal Committee
Topic: Criminal Accountability of UN Officials
Country: Swiss Confederation
Delegate: Christian Boyce
School: Forest Hills Northern High School
United Nations (UN) officials, similarly to a specific nation’s diplomats, are provided
immunity so that their work may be conducted well and efficiently. However, with the territory
comes a serious concern regarding the limits of immunity and the potential abuses of the
practice. In recent years, such misuses of immunity have emerged, engendering discussion on
how the issue must be addressed. Among other cases, sexual misconduct among peacekeepers
and fraud within various UN organizations have been at the forefront of the discourse. At the
heart of these individual cases is the matter of how the UN will hold perpetrators accountable
and to whose responsibility prosecution lies.
Throughout its own proceedings on the matter, the Swiss Confederation has asserted its
own competence to prosecute Swiss nationals serving as UN officials. Switzerland has also
remained an advocate for limited universal jurisdiction. Swiss criminal law pertains to acts
committed by its nationals abroad. Furthermore, Swiss federal law contains provisions for
international assistance in criminal investigations. The Swiss Confederation has maintained a
firm stance in favor of the creation of an international convention to address jurisdictional issues,
as encouraged by the Group of Legal Experts in General Assembly (GA) A/60/980 . To inform
discussion on the matter, the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law conducted a study on a sample
of UN member states to determine possible gaps in criminal prosecution regarding UN officials.
The United Nations itself has stressed the importance of resolving the matter. The
Secretary-General maintains a zero-tolerance approach to UN official misconduct. While the
Secretary-General has provided reports on allegations of misconduct, the United Nations has
done little in the way of finding a solution. In GA Resolution 71/134, the United Nations has
mostly left the matter of prosecution up to the individual member states, encouraging them to
take appropriate measures for punishing wrongdoings. The UN has put itself in a more ancillary
position, providing information to individual states with each criminal case.
The Swiss Confederation is in favor of increasing international cooperation on the matter
of criminal accountability. While individual nations should be the primary actors regarding
criminal prosecution, there are many cases in which there are no provisions for such action.
Many countries have no laws regarding nationals abroad. It is within the very nature of the
United Nations to work together to resolve the issue. Switzerland looks forward to cooperating
with its allies and other UN member states to increase mutual assistance and potentially UN
involvement to better handle issues with its officials.
