Oxfam scandal reflects culture of arrogance

The Charity Commission report into the sexual misconduct of Oxfam workers in Haiti is highly critical of the organisation’s internal governance and of its failure to follow its own rules. Warnings about the predatory behaviour of certain individuals were ignored, even though some of the victims were minors. The risks were not taken seriously enough and senior staff were dealt with more leniently than those in more lowly positions. Some victims who complained were returned to conflict zones and danger.

It took diligent journalism and the courage of whistle-blowers to expose a tawdry scandal – the sexual exploitation of vulnerable people by those sent to help them, in this case during the aftermath of the dreadful earthquake that killed thousands in Haiti in 2010.

The failure to act was compounded by a later cover-up and accusations of lying. Oxfam has paid a price. Its senior management has been partially cleared out and high-profile ambassadors have resigned. Government project funding is suspended until ministers are convinced it can demonstrate “moral leadership”.

However, there is another aspect to the affair which the Charity Commission hardly touches upon. The incidents in Haiti were symptomatic of a wider problem, a culture of arrogance and anticapitalist posturing that means sight is lost of the principal function of a charity such as Oxfam, which is to relieve suffering and hardship. This is not just about process but a whole set of skewed values that apply right across the aid sector.

The idea that these sanctimonious charities lecture the rest of us about poverty and morality while presiding over such behaviour is outrageous. Aid agencies are required to be apolitical yet some give the impression of being anti-wealth, anticonservative and pro-corbyn. Last year Oxfam issued a report on inequality in Britain and complained of an “extreme form of capitalism” that only works for those at the top even though fewer people are in abject poverty than at any time in history. It had previously denounced the Coalition’s austerity programme.

The aid sector does a great deal of good around the world and has many dedicated staff who sacrifice much to help others. But there is no obvious reason why this needs to be delivered through organisations like Oxfam.