UNITED NATIONS, October 21 (RIA Novosti) – UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned on Tuesday the decision of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to expel director of the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office (UNJHRO) Scott Campbell.
Ban Ki-moon urged "the Government of the DRC to reconsider its position on his [Campbell's] expulsion and to take urgent action to address the threats against other staff", noting that he was "deeply concerned" by the threats.
"The Joint Office and the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO) as a whole are mandated by the Security Council to assist the Government of the DRC and its people in this regard. By impeding the United Nations' human rights work, the Government is failing to uphold its obligations," the Secretary General said.
The DRC ordered Campbell to leave the country on October 16. The order took effect the following day.
The expulsion came after the release of a UN report, which said that Congolese police executed at least nine men in the capital Kinshasa during a crackdown on gangs. The report, released by UNJHRO on October 15, also said that the police were responsible for the disappearance of at least 32 people in the course of the crackdown operation.
