UK government reviews Oxfam work amid Haiti sex worker scandal

The British government yesterday announced it was reviewing all of its work with Oxfam amid allegations that the charity covered up a scandal involving its staff using prostitutes in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake.

The Department for International Development (DFID) said it has no tolerance for sexual misconduct and that the charity needed to explain “the way this appalling abuse of vulnerable people was dealt with”.

“The International Development Secretary is reviewing work with Oxfam and has requested a meeting,” said a spokesman.

An investigation by British newspaper The Times found the charity, which has its headquarters in Oxford, UK, allowed three men to resign and sacked four others who were accused of gross misconduct after an inquiry into sexual exploitation by aid workers in Haiti.

Oxfam’s staff had been part of an international relief effort on the island after the earthquake in 2010 that killed 220,000 people and displaced 1.5 million. Oxfam’s chief executive, Mark Goldring, said there was no cover-up. “We were very open with the public that we were ashamed of the behaviour of our staff. We still are,” he told the BBC. He said that he was “absolutely committed … to wipe out that kind of behaviour from Oxfam”.

Oxfam said an internal investigation in 2011 found a

Prostitutes were invited to homes paid for by the charity for sex parties. Oxfam failed to tell other agencies about the staff

“culture of impunity” among some staff. “The behaviour of some members of Oxfam staff uncovered in Haiti in 2011 was totally unacceptable,” it said on Friday.

“Our primary aim was always to root out and take action against those involved and we publicly announced, including to media, the investigation and the action we took as a result.”

The DFID spokesman said: “We acknowledge that hundreds of Oxfam staff have done no wrong and work tirelessly for the people they serve, but the handling by the senior team about this investigation and their openness with us and the charity commission showed a lack of judgment.

“We have a zero-tolerance policy for the type of activity that took place … and we expect our partners to as well.”

According to sources cited by The Times, prostitutes were invited to homes paid for by the charity for sex parties. The newspaper said Oxfam failed to warn other aid agencies about the implicated staff, which allowed them to continue working among vulnerable people in other places.

Roland van Hauwermeiren, 68, who was forced to resign as Oxfam Haiti country director in 2011 after allegedly admitting hiring prostitutes, went on to become head of mission for Action Against Hunger in Bangladesh in 2014, according to The Times.