‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Abstract Background Peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) is widespread. While the United Nation’s (UN) zero-tolerance policy prohibits all exploitative and abusive peacekeeper sexual interactions with host community members, its implementation has been criticized for failing t...
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BMC
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Conflict and Health |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-025-00693-x |
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| author | Samantha Gray Sandrine Lusamba Heather Stuart Sabine Lee Susan A. Bartels |
| author_facet | Samantha Gray Sandrine Lusamba Heather Stuart Sabine Lee Susan A. Bartels |
| author_sort | Samantha Gray |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) is widespread. While the United Nation’s (UN) zero-tolerance policy prohibits all exploitative and abusive peacekeeper sexual interactions with host community members, its implementation has been criticized for failing to recognize women’s agency and survival needs by oversimplifying the complex and dynamic romantic and transactional elements. This study aims to demonstrate that not all sexual interactions between peacekeepers and host community members are equally exploitative or abusive. Methods The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was chosen for this study due to its longstanding history of UN peacekeeping operations, documented cases of peacekeeper-perpetrated SEA, and socio-economic and gendered inequalities that contribute to transactional and coercive sexual interactions. To provide evidence that not all sexual interactions between peacekeepers and host community members are equally exploitative and/or abusive and to better understand how local community members perceive these sexual interactions at the intersection of romance and mutually beneficial transactions, we analysed micro-narrative data (n = 1822) from the eastern DRC. Results Four prominent types of sexual interactions were identified: romantic, transactional sex, sex work, and sexual assault/harassment. The characteristics of the interactions highlighted the influence of structural factors, economic need, and gendered power. Community perceptions around initiation, intermediaries, and beneficiaries varied and were, by construct, at odds with the UN’s conceptualization of sexual interactions between their staff and beneficiaries as exploitative and/or abusive due to the power dynamics inherent in such relationships. Conclusions The zero-tolerance policy fails to recognize the nuanced range of diverse and dynamic sexual interactions between UN peacekeepers and host community members in the DRC. It is recommended that SEA reporting measures be reconfigured in light of this complexity, and we suggest a non-binary method of measuring the degree of exploitation and abuse. Accepting that sexual interactions between host community members and UN peacekeepers represent varying levels of exploitation and abuse may improve interventions to better prevent and address peacekeeper-perpetrated SEA. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e7a51d1db25c4e7a9be09123a33fb9cd |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1752-1505 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Conflict and Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-e7a51d1db25c4e7a9be09123a33fb9cd2025-08-20T03:43:11ZengBMCConflict and Health1752-15052025-07-0119111610.1186/s13031-025-00693-x‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of CongoSamantha Gray0Sandrine Lusamba1Heather Stuart2Sabine Lee3Susan A. Bartels4Department of Public Health Sciences, Queen’s UniversitySolidarité Féminine Pour La Paix et le Développement IntégralDepartment of Public Health Sciences, Queen’s UniversityDepartment of History, University of BirminghamDepartment of Public Health Sciences, Queen’s UniversityAbstract Background Peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) is widespread. While the United Nation’s (UN) zero-tolerance policy prohibits all exploitative and abusive peacekeeper sexual interactions with host community members, its implementation has been criticized for failing to recognize women’s agency and survival needs by oversimplifying the complex and dynamic romantic and transactional elements. This study aims to demonstrate that not all sexual interactions between peacekeepers and host community members are equally exploitative or abusive. Methods The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was chosen for this study due to its longstanding history of UN peacekeeping operations, documented cases of peacekeeper-perpetrated SEA, and socio-economic and gendered inequalities that contribute to transactional and coercive sexual interactions. To provide evidence that not all sexual interactions between peacekeepers and host community members are equally exploitative and/or abusive and to better understand how local community members perceive these sexual interactions at the intersection of romance and mutually beneficial transactions, we analysed micro-narrative data (n = 1822) from the eastern DRC. Results Four prominent types of sexual interactions were identified: romantic, transactional sex, sex work, and sexual assault/harassment. The characteristics of the interactions highlighted the influence of structural factors, economic need, and gendered power. Community perceptions around initiation, intermediaries, and beneficiaries varied and were, by construct, at odds with the UN’s conceptualization of sexual interactions between their staff and beneficiaries as exploitative and/or abusive due to the power dynamics inherent in such relationships. Conclusions The zero-tolerance policy fails to recognize the nuanced range of diverse and dynamic sexual interactions between UN peacekeepers and host community members in the DRC. It is recommended that SEA reporting measures be reconfigured in light of this complexity, and we suggest a non-binary method of measuring the degree of exploitation and abuse. Accepting that sexual interactions between host community members and UN peacekeepers represent varying levels of exploitation and abuse may improve interventions to better prevent and address peacekeeper-perpetrated SEA.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-025-00693-xDemocratic Republic of CongoSexual abuseExploitationMONUSCOPeacekeepingUnited Nations |
| spellingShingle | Samantha Gray Sandrine Lusamba Heather Stuart Sabine Lee Susan A. Bartels ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo Conflict and Health Democratic Republic of Congo Sexual abuse Exploitation MONUSCO Peacekeeping United Nations |
| title | ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo |
| title_full | ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo |
| title_fullStr | ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo |
| title_short | ‘They were just enjoying love and she was making money’: A qualitative analysis of UN peacekeeper sexual interactions in the Democratic Republic of Congo |
| title_sort | they were just enjoying love and she was making money a qualitative analysis of un peacekeeper sexual interactions in the democratic republic of congo |
| topic | Democratic Republic of Congo Sexual abuse Exploitation MONUSCO Peacekeeping United Nations |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13031-025-00693-x |
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