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AP Exclusive: UN Rights Staff Fear for Jobs Amid Abuse Case

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In this Feb. 13, 2006, file photo, Anders Kompass, the U.N. High Commission for Human Rights representative in Guatemala, speaks with members of the media during a news conference in Guatemala City. The U.N.’s poor handling of child sex abuse claims against French soldiers has human rights staffers in the field fearing for their jobs as they struggle with how to respond to highly sensitive allegations in the future, according to a letter to the world body’s human rights chief obtained by The Associated Press. The letter dated May 8 from U.N. human rights field staffers is an angry response to last month’s suspension of colleague Kompass for telling French authorities, a decision that the U.N. Dispute Tribunal reversed this month. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo, File)

In this Feb. 13, 2006, file photo, Anders Kompass, the U.N. High Commission for Human Rights representative in Guatemala, speaks with members of the media during a news conference in Guatemala City. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo, File)

CARA ANNA, Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N.’s mishandling of child sexual abuse claims against French soldiers has human rights staffers fearing for their jobs as they struggle with how to respond to highly sensitive allegations in the future, according to a letter to the world body’s human rights chief obtained by The Associated Press.

In a separate letter to the U.N. secretary-general, a woman who worked directly under the U.N. staffer who was suspended for alerting French authorities is protesting her dismissal last week, a day before she says she was to testify in support of him for an internal U.N. investigation.

A year after the U.N. first heard children as young as 9 describe how they were given cookies or water bottles in exchange for sodomy or oral sex by French soldiers protecting their displaced persons camp in conflict-torn Central African Republic, it seems the only person who has been punished is the staffer who told the French. France has not announced any arrests and this week said it was still investigating.

In statements marked “strictly confidential” and first reported by the AP this week, the U.N. deputy high commissioner for human rights in March said she had “failed to follow up” on the allegations gathered by her own office, even as French authorities pressed U.N. officials for several months for more information.

The U.N. first heard of the allegations in May 2014 through a human rights staffer with the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic. On Friday, the U.N. peacekeeping chief, Herve Ladsous, said he didn’t hear of the allegations until this spring. When asked why the head of the mission didn’t tell him immediately, Ladsous said, “Some reporting lines maybe didn’t function.”

The two new letters indicate a crisis in an office that says it “represents the world’s commitment to universal ideals of human dignity.”

The letter dated May 8 from U.N. human rights field staffers is an angry response to last month’s suspension of colleague Anders Kompass for telling French authorities, a decision that the U.N. Dispute Tribunal reversed this month. The U.N. says Kompass breached protocol in sharing the report of children’s allegations without redacting the names in it. An internal investigation continues, and he could be fired.

“What could have been a success story showing the world how we act is, once again, a failure for the U.N.,” says the letter to the high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Raad al-Hussein. It is not clear how many people signed it.

“What should be the role of a human rights officer while confronting serious allegations of human rights abuses?” the letter asks. “Will we be able to do our work without fearing punishment and retaliation?”

A spokesman for the human rights office, Andre-Michel Essoungou, said Thursday that he had not seen the letter. “Ultimately, though, the issue is not whether staff should fear anything when they act but about sharing information without protecting victims/witnesses as we should,” he said in an email.

In a separate May 23 letter to U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon, Miranda Brown says her dismissal this month “bears all the hallmarks of retaliation.” Her letter says she was the acting director of the human rights office’s Africa branch, working directly under Kompass, shortly after the report with the children’s allegations reached the office’s Geneva headquarters last summer.

Brown’s letter says she was the “key contact” at the time between the office and the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic. The French soldiers were supporting the mission under a U.N. mandate.

Her letter notes the rumor that a second staffer, a woman, had also given the allegations to the French, and Brown says it wasn’t her. A confidential statement by Zeid dated late March, obtained by the AP, mentions “not one but possibly two sources.”

If the U.N. wants a complete investigation into how the child sexual abuse allegations were handled, it will need Brown’s testimony, her letter says.

Brown asserts that under Swiss law she is no longer protected against a possible defamation claim for giving testimony in the U.N. internal investigation, now that she no longer works for the United Nations.

Her letter says she was terminated May 21. The next day, an investigator with the U.N. Office of Internal Oversight Services was still asking her to testify, a copy of the email request shows. The investigator says he isn’t clear how the immunity issue would affect her. Another email from the office, shortly after Brown was told in mid-May she would be dismissed, invites her to testify between May 19 and 22. A third email calls the matter “rather urgent.”

Brown has criticized the U.N.’s whistleblower protections in the past, and in her latest letter she worries that’s being used against her.

On Thursday, Brown said she has had no response. Spokesmen for Ban had no immediate comment.

The spokesman for the secretary-general, Stephane Dujarric, this week told reporters that the current investigation will look into how the entire U.N. system handled the child sexual abuse allegations, but U.N. employees have expressed doubt that it will look beyond what the U.N. human rights chief has called the “leak” to the French.

Kompass has not spoken publicly because the case is under investigation.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Bay Area

Nigerian Bank Chief Killed in Helicopter Crash on Way to Superbowl XVIII

According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept., the crash occurred near Nipton, on the edge of the Mojave Desert Preserve. The poor weather conditions — rain, wind and snow showers—may have contributed to the accident, although the investigation is not complete. All six aboard were killed. Herbert Wigwe, 57, founded Access Bank in 1989, and it became the country’s largest competitor, Diamond Bank in 2018.

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Herbert Wigwe with his wife, Chizoba Wigwe, left, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, right. ENigeria Newspaper image.
Herbert Wigwe with his wife, Chizoba Wigwe, left, and Abimbola Ogunbanjo, right. ENigeria Newspaper image.

By Post Staff

The co-founder of one of Nigeria’s largest banks died with his wife, son and three others when the helicopter transporting them from Palm Springs, Ca., to Boulder City, Nev. to attend the fifty-eighth SuperBowl at the stadium outside Las Vegas crashed on Feb. 9.

According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept., the crash occurred near Nipton, on the edge of the Mojave Desert Preserve. The poor weather conditions — rain, wind and snow showers—may have contributed to the accident, although the investigation is not complete. All six aboard were killed

Herbert Wigwe, 57, founded Access Bank in 1989, and it became the country’s largest competitor, Diamond Bank in 2018.

More recently, Wigwe was planning to open a banking service in Asia this year after making successful expansions to other parts of Africa, including South Africa, Kenya, and Botswana.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu described Wigwe’s death as an ‘overwhelming tragedy.”

Oakland resident and Nigerian immigrant Kayode Gbadebo agrees with Tinubu. He met Wigwe in Nigeria but crossed paths with him in London in 2006. Wigwe, he said, “took risks.”

He was young and people thought he couldn’t do what he intended, which was not so much about money but community.

“He was more like Jesus in washing the feet of the poor– Wigwe was culturizing community,” Gbadebo said.

“There will never be another like him. This is a deep, deep loss” and he hopes everyone will eventually “be comforted.”

He was also disappointed that a replacement has already been named even before Wigwe is buried. “It is not reasonable. You don’t want a vacuum, but it’s” not fair to the family, Gbadebo observed.

Wigwe had also been working to solve the migration issues from African countries, believing that “investing in higher education was key to controlling mass migration, which “is destabilising countries across the world,” BBC News reported.

“We need to take a holistic approach to address global migration, starting with our traditional framework for international development,” Wigwe wrote.

To that end, according to BBC News, Wigwe was preparing to open Wigwe University in Niger, where he was from.

“The best place to limit migration is not in the middle of the Mediterranean or the English Channel or the Rio Grande. It is in the home countries that so many migrants are so desperate to leave,” he wrote, saying his university was an opportunity for him “to give back to society.”

Besides Wigwe and his wife, Chizoba Nwuba Wigwe, and one son, two crew members and Bimbo Ogunbanjo, former group chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, were also killed in the crash.

According to Wikipedia, three other children survive Wigwe.

In his statement reported in People magazine, Tinubu described Wigwe as “a distinguished banker, humanitarian, and entrepreneur.”

“I pray for the peaceful repose of the departed and ask God Almighty to comfort the multitude of Nigerians who are grieving and the families of the deceased at this deeply agonizing moment,” the president said.

He added, “Their passing is an overwhelming tragedy that is shocking beyond comprehension.”

Besides feeling the tremendous loss, Gbadebo fears the disorder and greed that will follow. “It’s a mess,” he said.

People magazine, BBC News and Wikipedia were the sources for this report.

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Activism

No Valid Reason for Failing to Condemn Hamas’ Act of Terrorism

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists crossed the Israel-Gaza border and indiscriminately slaughtered Israeli civilians in their homes. They killed nearly 300 young people at a music festival and took at least 200 hostages including 30 children. The atrocities they committed included massacres of families, abduction of the elderly and children, burning of babies and rapes of women.

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iStock image.
iStock image.

By Joe W. Bowers Jr.

California Black Media

OPINION

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists crossed the Israel-Gaza border and indiscriminately slaughtered Israeli civilians in their homes.

They killed nearly 300 young people at a music festival and took at least 200 hostages including 30 children. The atrocities they committed included massacres of families, abduction of the elderly and children, burning of babies and rapes of women.

The horrific surprise attack deserves universal and unequivocal condemnation. President Joe Biden called what Hamas did “an act of sheer evil” and pledged to defend the lives of Israelis and Jewish Americans.

He said, “Let there be no doubt. The United States has Israel’s back. We’ll make sure the Jewish and democratic state of Israel can defend itself today, tomorrow, as we always have.”

Hamas killed approximately 1,400 people including 32 Americans. Citizens from 40 different countries including the United Kingdom, France, Mexico, and Thailand were killed or reported missing.

Hamas fighters breached Israel’s border defenses on the final day of Sukkot while soldiers were away due to the holiday and launched attacks on 22 towns outside the Gaza Strip. This security lapse has been described as a catastrophic failure of Israel’s intelligence agencies..

Hamas is an extremist Islamist militant organization that has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007. It is recognized as an Iranian-backed terrorist group by the U.S. and the European Union and has a long history of violence against Jews and Palestinians, the latter of whom they often use as human shields.

While there have been plenty of groups who have unequivocally condemned the massacres, there are a number who haven’t, including organizations such as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Black Alliance for Peace, Red Nation, and independent Black Lives Matter (BLM) chapters (excluding the national Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation).

The DSA San Francisco chapter put out a statement on Oct. 9 that said, “Socialists support the Palestinian people’s, and all people’s, right to resist and fight for their own liberation. This weekend’s events are no different.”

Student organizations at a number of universities and colleges in California signed a solidarity statement titled “Resistance Uprising in Gaza” from Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). The statement attributes the violence of the Hamas attack to what it refers to as Israeli apartheid and occupation.

The SJP statement written by Bears for Palestine at UC Berkeley says, “We support the resistance, we support the liberation movement, and we indisputably support the Uprising.”  Essentially, these students are indirectly associating themselves with Hamas’ barbaric acts under the guise of “resistance.”

Signing the statement were 51 student organizations including those from Stanford, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Davis, UC San Diego, CSU Sacramento, and USC.

A statement signed by 34 Harvard student organizations said, “We, the undersigned student organizations, hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.”

Many university leaders, where these students are enrolled, have been guilty of failing to unequivocally condemn Hamas and for inadequately addressing their students’ expressed support for Hamas.

Several Stanford faculty members, including three Nobel laureates, condemned Stanford’s administrators’ weak response to acts of terrorism and the expression of pro-Hamas sentiments by students on campus.

Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza in 2005. It dismantled 21 Israeli settlements in the territory and handed them over to the Palestinian Authority.

The assault by Hamas on Oct. 7 was not an ordinary clash with Israel. Hamas’ actions resulted in the deadliest single day for Jews since the Holocaust.

While there are valid reasons for protesting Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and a real reckoning with the Israeli government on its policies is long overdue, nothing justifies Hamas’ attack.

Israelis who were killed largely had nothing to do with the conditions of Palestinians in Gaza. Some of the victims weren’t even Israeli — they were just tourists.

The students blaming Israel for the atrocities committed by Hamas have faced criticism. Some groups have withdrawn their endorsements because of the backlash aimed at them. Others have doubled down on their activism. SJP held a “National Day of Resistance” on several campuses.

Several CEOs have asked Harvard to disclose a list of members from the organizations assigning responsibility to Israel to insure they do not hire any of their members. A Berkeley law professor has also urged firms not to hire his students who have publicly blamed Israel for the war.

This California Black Media report was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library.

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Activism

Oakland Deputy Mayor Kimberly Mayfield Meets Legislators in France

Dr. Kimberly Mayfield, deputy mayor of the City of Oakland, met with elected officials in France, including two members of the French National Assembly, and visited several educational programs, where she spoke with educators and students. Dr. Mayfield was able to visit France after a visit to London with the Hidden Genius Project and Oakland Natives Give Back to participate in Black History Month, which takes place in October in England. No public money was spent.

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Attending the meeting at the French National Assembly were (L to R): Kimberly Mayfield, Danièle Obono, Nadège Abomangoli, and Robyn Wilkes. Photo courtesy of Kimberly Mayfield.
Attending the meeting at the French National Assembly were (L to R): Kimberly Mayfield, Danièle Obono, Nadège Abomangoli, and Robyn Wilkes. Photo courtesy of Kimberly Mayfield.

By Ken Epstein

Dr. Kimberly Mayfield, deputy mayor of the City of Oakland, last week met with elected officials in France, including two members of the French National Assembly, and visited several educational programs, where she spoke with educators and students.

She met with Danièle Obono and Nadège Abomangoli, both members of the French Parliament, where they discussed many issues, including policymaking, racism, and immigration.

Dr. Mayfield was able to visit France after a visit to London with the Hidden Genius Project and Oakland Natives Give Back to participate in Black History Month, which takes place in October in England. No public money was spent.

Obono, has represented the 17th constituency of Paris in the National Assembly since 2017. A member of La France Insoumise (FI), she was reelected in the first round of the 2022 legislative election.

Abomangoli, also a member of La France Insoumise, was elected to Parliament for Seine-Saint-Denis’s 10th constituency in the 2022 French legislative election. She was born in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo.

The two leaders had lots of questions about current conditions in the U.S., Dr. Mayfield told the Oakland Post. “They wanted to know what it means for Oakland to be a sanctuary city, what my thoughts were on the upcoming presidential elections, and what I thought the prospects were for Biden and Trump,” she said.

They also wanted to find out about Black fraternities and sororities in the U.S., and what people did to mobilize the vote, so that voter suppression would not be able to determine the outcome of elections.

They pointed out that, as in the U.S., people in France are dealing with police brutality, and the handful of Black members of Parliament sometimes face hostility when they speak out.

With an extensive background as an education professor and administrator, as well as a public-school teacher, Mayfield said she was excited to have the opportunity to visit a primary and a middle school and had a wide-ranging conversation with young people at Réseau Etudiant, an after-school study program.

She also met with residents and elected officials from Gennevilliers, a small port city close to Paris, which is similar to Oakland in demographics and politics.

Zahir Meliani, a resident of Gennevilliers, made arrangements for Mayfield’s meetings at the Parliament and her visit to his city.

She was welcomed by Mayor Patrice Leclerc and one of his deputies, Celine Lanoiselée, and they toured areas of the town. They discussed some differences in city governance structures between France and the U.S. and explored the potential for exchange visits between young people in the two countries.

“I am excited to work on improving our cities and contributing to peace in the world by using the potential for online and in-person visits to learn from each other,” said Mayfield.

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