Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in Peacekeeping and Aid: Critiquing the Past, Plotting the Future

In 2003, the UN adopted a zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers and aid workers. The policy arrived amid a series of scandals revealing sexual misconduct perpetrated against the very people peacekeeping and humanitarian missions were meant to protect.

This edited collection, including contributions from academics and practitioners, highlights the challenges of preventing and responding to abuse in peacekeeping and aid work, and the unintended consequences of current approaches. It lays bare the structures of power, coloniality and racism that underpin abuse and hinder accountability while charting a path for future action.

This eye-opening book will appeal to academics and students of the politics and practice of peacekeeping and humanitarianism, and to practitioners, policy makers and those working within the field.

Jasmine-Kim Westendorf is Associate Professor of International Relations at La Trobe University. She has written two books and numerous articles in top journals. She has extensive experience in conflict resolution and prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, and has held visiting professorships at several institutions. Elliot Dolan-Evans teaches at Monash University. He holds a PhD in International Relations with a focus on the political economy of peacebuilding, capitalism and health, and the activities of international financial institutions during war. His work has appeared in several international journals, and he has professional experience in law and medicine.