Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Munu

(294 posts)
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 08:21 AM 9 hrs ago

AP exclusive: Doctors Without Borders report found cases of abuse and exploitation by staff in Chad

AP exclusive: Doctors Without Borders report found cases of abuse and exploitation by staff in Chad

The international aid group Doctors Without Borders found a pattern of abuse and sexual exploitation by some local and foreign staff working in Chad along the Sudanese border, in some cases targeting underage girls or trading food or jobs for sex with refugees, according to a confidential internal memo obtained by The Associated Press.

The Doctors Without Borders report — completed in July and first reported Saturday by The Associated Press — found 59 allegations of abuse and said 18 staff members were dismissed and barred from future employment. In some cases, the group told AP, the allegations couldn’t be verified or the perpetrators identified. The report also said some of the repeated exploitation suggested potentially organized “sexual trafficking.”

The organization said it launched the months long investigation in response to AP reporting that women had accused staff of sexually exploiting them in displacement sites in Chad, where hundreds of thousands fled from Sudan’s devastating civil war, now in its fourth year. The report credited AP as playing “a fundamental role as an external whistleblower.”

The findings by Doctors Without Borders — one of the largest employers and biggest aid organizations in the refugee camps in eastern Chad — indicate the abuse was more widespread than previously reported.

...
18 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
AP exclusive: Doctors Without Borders report found cases of abuse and exploitation by staff in Chad (Original Post) Munu 9 hrs ago OP
Doctors Without Borders engaging in human trafficking Sympthsical 9 hrs ago #1
I am not surprised. yardwork 9 hrs ago #4
I have an evangelical cousin who went on mission to Africa Sympthsical 8 hrs ago #9
Your cousin has had more than his fair share of heartbreak! yardwork 8 hrs ago #10
Somehow I doubt that they first heard of this through the AP article RockCreek 9 hrs ago #2
Who is the "they" in your title? (nt) muriel_volestrangler 9 hrs ago #3
Doctors without Borders personnel operating in Chad RockCreek 9 hrs ago #5
DWB Sympthsical 9 hrs ago #6
Ah, OK - I'd missed that AP first reported on this in Nov 2024 (nt) muriel_volestrangler 8 hrs ago #8
Well, yeah. The world's do-gooders are focused on Israel. yardwork 8 hrs ago #11
If what's going on in Africa were going on in Europe ... Munu 4 hrs ago #15
It would be called a genocide. yardwork 4 hrs ago #16
The conflict deaths in Ukraine/Russia in 2025 were reckoned to be slightly more than in Sudan muriel_volestrangler 35 min ago #17
... Solly Mack 8 hrs ago #7
At least they're making efforts to self police harumph 7 hrs ago #12
At the VERY least TheProle 7 hrs ago #13
DWB has done very good work in the past. harumph 6 hrs ago #14
Hopefully. I'd never heard bad things about them electric_blue68 25 min ago #18

Sympthsical

(11,248 posts)
1. Doctors Without Borders engaging in human trafficking
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 08:24 AM
9 hrs ago

Was not on my bingo card this year.

What even is this world.

If I see an article that Chef Andres uses puppies in his World Kitchen, I'm tapping out.

yardwork

(69,848 posts)
4. I am not surprised.
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 08:36 AM
9 hrs ago

I stopped donating to this group years ago because of concerning issues.

While all the public relations focus is on Gaza, the scale of human suffering in sub-Saharan Africa is overlooked. Trump and Musk destroying USAID left hundreds of millions of people starving, without medical care, left to the mercy of Russia, China, and local evil-doers empowered by the chaos.

NGOs can't stop this sheer volume of evil. And they have their own problems.

Sympthsical

(11,248 posts)
9. I have an evangelical cousin who went on mission to Africa
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 08:47 AM
8 hrs ago

Really nice guy actually. Super Christ-y, but not in that hates minorities sort of way (look, I know it's a low bar).

Anyway, he went to Africa to help build homes and work on water distribution. Tapped out after a few months, because while there were a lot of people who were there to genuinely help, he didn't like how exploiters were allowed to creep in. People who behaved like assholes because they had power over the underprivileged around them. Savior complex, and since I'm a good person, I can do whatever I want. Always justifying shitty behavior.

My cousin's been through some shit. Stepfather murdered his mother shortly after his father died young, lost his only sibling to a heroin overdose, etc. etc. He does not countenance treating people poorly.

He couldn't stand to be around the people he was with anymore. He said they wanted to look like good people without actually being good people.

It's a shame, because there are a lot of people who really do want to help and do amazing work. But many of these organizations just don't police themselves enough to prevent predatory types from latching on while hiding under their moral authority. And then the institutional rot sets in and the cover ups begin. We see it again and again.

yardwork

(69,848 posts)
10. Your cousin has had more than his fair share of heartbreak!
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 09:32 AM
8 hrs ago

I have some limited experience traveling and working in sub-Saharan Africa. The scale of the problem is huge. I know people have written many, many books about the causes. What I saw, personally and in my very limited experience, is a cautionary tale for us all.

In the absence of a strong democratic government, predators move in. SSA has a lot of natural resources and greedy people want it all.

I am certain that destroying USAID was a deliberate tactic to allow Musk and his evil buddies a clear field. Russia has pretty much taken over the countries in the belt below the gulf. China is buying up everything in sight.

Sympthsical

(11,248 posts)
6. DWB
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 08:38 AM
9 hrs ago

From the article:

The organization said it launched the monthslong investigation in response to AP reporting that women had accused staff of sexually exploiting them in displacement sites in Chad


Agree with the poster. I doubt they had zero idea until a reporter asked them about it. Sounds more like the rug sweeping wasn't going to work anymore.

yardwork

(69,848 posts)
11. Well, yeah. The world's do-gooders are focused on Israel.
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 09:36 AM
8 hrs ago

Step back and there's a much larger scale of evil going on. Not excusing Israel's actions at all, but there are horrific things going on all over the world that are mostly ignored.

It's very convenient for the evil-doers that every progressive has been laser-focused on Israel.

It was very convenient for the evil-doers to get Trump and his buddies back in the White House. Very convenient.

Munu

(294 posts)
15. If what's going on in Africa were going on in Europe ...
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 12:59 PM
4 hrs ago

... it would be called a "world war".

harumph

(3,486 posts)
14. DWB has done very good work in the past.
Mon Jun 15, 2026, 10:55 AM
6 hrs ago

I don't know of any organization operating in the conditions they typically do, and with such a vulnerable demographic, is not going to be an attractive target for these types of criminals. If it were the Trump admin, they'd just ignore it and make efforts to recruit more sex abusers. Although the story is appalling, I'm confident that DWB is highly motivated to clean up its act. Things fall apart and good people have to put them back together.

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»AP exclusive: Doctors Wit...