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On 21 June BBC News released a new documentary on the treatment of whistleblowers in the UN. The 90 minute programme can be viewed in full only in the UK, but a YouTube preview is available more widely. The documentary includes interviews with former staff from OHCHR, UNDP, the UN Mission in Kosovo, and UNAIDS who believe that the testimonies they gave at the time were protected under UN 'whistleblower' rules. Instead, they suffered harassment and or loss of their jobs.
"What happens when UN staff try to call out their own managers and colleagues? Told by insiders with decades of experience working at the world’s top diplomatic institution, The Whistleblowers: Inside the UN gives first-hand accounts of what happens to staff when they report allegations of wrongdoing. Their stories reveal a culture of untouchability that reaches the highest levels of the organisation."
See related story here in which the former UN Spokesperson on harassment, assault and discrimination says there were women at the UN who had been "approached, accosted and raped". The more men were allowed to get away with it, she said, "the more they will keep doing it. She is not surprised by the 'deeply upsetting' testimonies.
"It suggests that sometimes the protection of the senior folk within each organisation matters more than the absence of harm to those who aren't powerful.
"It means there is a real tension within an organisation which not only upholds and advocates for human rights, but is actually the birthplace of most of these human rights - yet it hasn't learned to bring them home to the people who work for that organisation."If you are in the UK or elsewhere with access you can see the full video here.
"It suggests that sometimes the protection of the senior folk within each organisation matters more than the absence of harm to those who aren't powerful.
"It means there is a real tension within an organisation which not only upholds and advocates for human rights, but is actually the birthplace of most of these human rights - yet it hasn't learned to bring them home to the people who work for that organisation."If you are in the UK or elsewhere with access you can see the full video here.
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