Saturday, February 10, 2018

Oxfam Haiti prostitute claims: Charity did not give watchdog 'full details'


Oxfam did not give the Charity Commission full details about the use of prostitutes by some aid workers in Haiti in 2011, the watchdog says.

The charity did tell the regulator it was investigating inappropriate sexual behaviour, bullying, harassment and staff intimidation.

The Charity Commission took no further action but says it would have acted differently had it known all the facts.

Oxfam, which sacked four workers and let three resign, denies any cover-up.

The Charity Commission said the alleged behaviour had "absolutely no place in society" and charities needed to be held to the highest of standards.

It has written to Oxfam seeking more information, including a timeline of events, information about when the charity was made aware of specific allegations and the detail of the investigation's findings and conclusions.

The aid workers were in Haiti as part of the relief effort following the devastating magnitude 7.0 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people there in 2010.

The country's ambassador in London, Bocchit Edmond, has criticised the charity for failing to inform the Haitian authorities about what happened and said it should publicly apologise.

"It is really shocking, it is shameful, and it is unacceptable," he said. "I think Oxfam should look into itself deeply if they want to rebuild that trust they had."

Oxfam boss says charity is ashamed
Oxfam denies cover-up over 'Haiti prostitutes'
Head of Oxfam in Haiti resigns amid inquiry
The three workers who resigned included Oxfam's country director for Haiti, Roland Van Hauwermeiren, who according to the Times, used prostitutes at a villa rented for him by the charity.

The paper also reports the charity failed to alert other aid agencies about the staff members' behaviour, with Mr Van Hauwermeiren going on to work elsewhere in the sector.

Oxfam says it would not have given a positive reference for any of those who were dismissed or resigned.

source: www.bbc.com

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