 UN officials fear the sex-abuse scandal among peacekeepers in Africa is more widespread and appears to be a problem in each of the global body's 16 missions around the world. As the world body seeks to crack down on the abuse, it could bar countries from participating in missions if they fail to prosecute offenders, even though the UN is hard pressed to find contributing nations, the officials said on Friday. Rocked by widespread abuse of women and girls, including gang rape, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the United Nations also has found sexual exploitation cases in at least four other missions - in Burundi, Liberia, Ivory Coast - as well as more recently in Haiti, they added. "We think this will look worse before it begins to look better," Jane Holl Lute, assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, said. "We expect that more information will come from every mission on allegations. We are prepared for that." |