Category Archives: Charities

Oxfam’s ‘hypocrisy’ is not unique: the aid system is built on a power imbalance

Posted on by

Money and power are the cornerstones of exploitation, and rich donors have both. No wonder saints have become sinners

Just over a year since the allegations of sexual abuse in Haiti were revealed, Oxfam have been through the equivalent of a reality TV colonoscopy: the organisation has been turned inside out and upside down to reveal what lurks beneath.

An independent investigation on sexual misconduct found abuse far beyond Haiti. The independent commission’s conclusion, after visiting 20% of countries where Oxfam works, was that the issues were endemic.

Continue reading...

Oxfam failed to report child abuse claims in Haiti, inquiry finds

Posted on by

Damning Charity Commission report warns incidents in country were not isolated events

There were “serious problems with the culture, morale and behaviour” of Oxfam staff in Haiti according to a damning report which has found that the charity failed to disclose allegations of child abuse.

The Charity Commission report surveyed 7,000 pieces of evidence related to allegations that Oxfam had covered up its investigation into staff paying for sex while working on the response to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

Continue reading...

Amnesty International to make almost 100 staff redundant

Posted on by

‘Overspending by organisation’s senior leadership team’ blamed for £17m budget deficit

Amnesty International is to cut almost 100 jobs as part of urgent restructuring to tackle a “serious budget deficit”, the human rights organisation has confirmed.

Amnesty, labelled a “toxic” workplace in a February review, said in a statement that it expected to make 93 “painful and difficult” redundancies. Last week, it emerged that five members of the charity’s senior leadership team, all of whom offered their resignations following the damning review, will be made redundant by October.

Continue reading...

MacKenzie Bezos pledges at least half her wealth to charity

Posted on by

Jeff Bezos’ former wife, known as world’s 22nd richest person with $36.6bn fortune, signs up to the Giving Pledge

MacKenzie Bezos, who recently became the world’s fourth richest woman after her divorce from Jeff Bezos, founder and chief executive of Amazon, has promised to give away at least half her $36.6bn (£28.4bn) fortune.

The 49 year-old novelist and founder of the anti-bullying group Bystander Revolution said on Tuesday that she had “a disproportionate amount of money to share” and promised to work hard at giving it away “until the safe is empty”.

Continue reading...

Audrey Simpson obituary

Posted on by

My friend Audrey Simpson, who has died aged 83, was a powerful voice in Brighton and Hove, which she had made her adopted city after leaving London in 1978.

Without any previous experience, she bought a small, run-down, 12-room guest house, the Granville, overlooking the West Pier on the seafront, and transformed it into one of Brighton’s first boutique hotels. Later, in an adjacent space, she created a restaurant, Trogs, which met with equal success and became a gourmet mecca.

Continue reading...

Aid sector action to tackle abuse ‘completely unsatisfactory’, say MPs

Posted on by

International development committee evidence session on fighting sexual misconduct finds little has changed

Private aid companies and charities will be asked to reappear before MPs, after evidence given on tackling sexual abuse was condemned as “completely unsatisfactory”.

Stephen Twigg, chair of the international development committee (IDC), said he intended to invite representatives of both groups back.

Continue reading...

American founder of Liberia charity resigns in wake of rape allegations

Posted on by
  • Katie Meyler announces More Than Me departure on Facebook
  • Former staffer was reported to have assaulted school students

An American woman who established a charity to help vulnerable girls in Liberia has resigned, six months after taking a leave of absence in the wake of allegations that a local staffer raped several girls in the charity’s care.

Related: Liberia launches investigation into alleged rapes at US-backed school

Continue reading...

UK charity knew of alleged abuse in Congo parks but did not act

Posted on by

Wildlife trust that funded ‘eco-guards’ at the centre of rights abuse claims comes under scrutiny over failure to alert charities’ watchdog

A British charity set up to fund conservation parks in the Congo basin knew about allegations that tribal people were being abused by park guards but failed to alert the charities’ watchdog, the Guardian can reveal.

Last week, WWF launched an inquiry into claims that it has funded paramilitary guards accused of torturing, sexually assaulting and murdering people in Africa and Asia. In response to the claims, published by BuzzFeed News, the organisation said it has “stringent policies” to ensure the safeguarding of indigenous peoples’ rights and would take “swift action” should the review uncover any breaches.

Continue reading...

Has WWF’s mission to combat nature’s enemy gone too far?

Posted on by

Claims that the World Wide Fund for Nature is in bed with paramilitaries point to a wider need for root and branch reform

World Wide Fund for Nature, put down your weapons. You are not a mercenary. You are not a government. You are not a terrorist. Your mission: to save the planet. Saving the planet does not happen by shooting people, or even by threatening them.

One might be forgiven for thinking that headlines this week revealing allegations that WWF was in bed with paramilitaries in different parts of the world must have been referring to the erstwhile World Wrestling Federation, not the fluffy panda charity that saves tigers. How could this possibly be?

Continue reading...

WWF accused of funding guards who ‘tortured and killed scores of people’

Posted on by

World Wide Fund for Nature launches inquiry into claims that it works with paramilitaries allegedly involved in serious abuses

One of the world’s largest charities has launched an investigation into claims that it funds, equips and works with paramilitary forces accused of beating, torturing, sexually assaulting and murdering scores of people in national parks across Africa and Asia.

Human rights specialists will lead an independent review of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) conservation charity, following allegations of abuse in six countries, published by BuzzFeed news on Monday.

Continue reading...

Oxfam failed to address sexual misconduct and bullying, finds review

Posted on by

Independent commission says charity lacked robust safeguarding policies and was inconsistent in dealing with complaints

A damning interim review has highlighted Oxfam’s failure to tackle an environment at the charity that allowed sexual misconduct and bullying to go unchecked.

The report, produced by an independent commission, warned that no uniform system exists for dealing with complaints and said there are “drastic inconsistencies” in the way safeguarding issues are handled across the 90-plus countries in which Oxfam International operates.

Continue reading...

Save the Children UK chairman resigns after staff complaints

Posted on by

Peter Bennett-Jones, who was criticised over tackling of sexual harassment, quits as UN sack aid worker in Uganda

The chairman of Save the Children UK has resigned after complaints by staff that he was not doing enough to address allegations of sexual harassment.

The charity said Peter Bennett-Jones was standing down following objections to remarks he made during recent discussions with staff about the organisation’s future.

Continue reading...