The UN Development Programme is concerned about allegations of sexual assault and torture against police recruits during their nine- month training at Rejaf Police Academy.
UNDP was the main donor to the training of some 6,000 police men and women ahead of the referendum.Joe Feeney, who heads the UNDP in South Sudan, told SCR News that his department heard about the allegations and has asked the government to carry out investigations.
He noted that UNDP has a zero tolerance policy towards any form of harassment upon human beings.
Mr. Feeney said this is an opportunity for the authorities to learn from the allegations.
He called upon the government to put in place complaint mechanisms to ensure that such malpractices do not happen again.
The Associated Press published a report saying police recruits were beaten to death, sexually assaulted and forced to stand for hours in the blazing sun as part of a training programme funded by international donors.