UN chief Ban Ki Moon has sacked Kenyan Lt-General Johnson Mogoa Kimani Ondieki as head of UN peacekeeping force in South Sudan.
While the reason’s for Ondieki’s sacking are yet to be disclosed, a document signed by Ban shows that he was unhappy with how the UN missions in South Sudan handled the violence in Juba.
Ondieki was appointed six months ago to head the peacekeeping force.
A UN report indicates that UNMISS did not effectively respond to violence “due to an overall lack of leadership, preparedness and integration”.
The report, sent by Major General (retired) Patrick Cammart, examined UNMISS’s response to act of sexual violence in and around the Protection of Civillians (PoC) sites at UN House and the attack on the Terrain camp.
“During the attack, civilians were subjected to and witnessed gross human rights violations, including murder, intimidation, sexual violence and acts amounting to torture perpetrated by armed government soldiers,” the inquiry found.
The Special Investigation that generated the report also indicates there were conflicting orders among troops and control arrangements were inadequate, “while peacekeepers maintained risk-averse posture”.
It is said that Ban was “deeply distressed” by the findings and was outraged by the continued “betrayal of the people of South Sudan by too many of its leaders”.
