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WHO Director Tedros: His role in the affair is still unclear
Photo: CHRISTOPHER BLACK / AFP
There is talk of a lack of protection, possible reprisals and clear misconduct: In an open letter, international NGOs of the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a devastating testimony and they are demanding consequences. The initiators include Transparency International and the Whistleblowing International Network (WIN). Other organizations and people who work against corruption and for the protection of informants have also signed.
The background to this is the current annual meeting of the WHO and the controversy over a critical pandemic report, which the organization made to disappear after just one day last year.
As SPIEGEL and other media later revealed, the then WHO Vice Director Ranieri Guerra had intervened internally to stop the report and bring about changes.
In the meantime, the public prosecutor's office is also investigating
Transparency International and its partners are now calling for the case to be reviewed independently. In addition, they demand a reform of the standards for the protection of whistleblowers who expose abuses in the UN organization. Last but not least, this is necessary to ensure the credibility of the WHO in the ongoing corona pandemic. "The suppression of the report shows serious shortcomings," says the letter. And: "The credibility of the results is of crucial importance if governments around the world are to learn from them."
The 89-page analysis caused a stir because it documented that Italy had failed to update its pandemic plans since 2006.
WHO Vice Guerra himself previously worked in the Italian Ministry of Health - where, among other things, he was responsible for updating such plans.
The WHO insists, however, that their report was collected for formal reasons.
An announced revision of the paper has not yet appeared.
The Bergamo public prosecutor's office is now investigating Guerra.
"I was brutal with the idiots"
Chat messages that emerged later, on which SPIEGEL also reported, showed how confidently the top official boasted about his behavior: "I was brutal with the idiots in Venice," wrote Guerra of his own colleagues who had written the report.
And: "I finally went to Tedros and had the document withdrawn."
Tedros is the nickname of Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director General.
If the chat messages were correct, the WHO chief would have personally campaigned to have a critical publication disappear.
The WHO denies that.
It has not yet been clarified how much the General Director knew about the actions of his deputy at the time and whether he was possibly even involved himself.
The affair also attracted attention because it was started by a WHO employee.
Italian health expert Francesco Zambon was the lead author of the report and the recipient of several threat messages from Guerra.
Before the case became known, he had already turned to various offices internally and asked for protection and support.
"We are deeply concerned about the case"
According to Transparency International and other NGOs, WHO should have provided this aid, but failed. "We are deeply concerned about the case," the organizations now write in the letter that was sent to the members of the current World Health Conference on Wednesday and is available to SPIEGEL. "First, because it appears that a scientific report of great public interest has been suppressed," it continues. “Second, because of the alleged retaliation against Dr. Zambon. "
Finally, the authors of the open letter draw a bitter conclusion: The months of non-reaction by the WHO could “only have a deterrent effect on other employees, as well as on those who work for similar international bodies.
The case is likely to stir up serious distrust in the systems of the WHO and the UN. "
External auditors: number of complaints more than doubled
The organizations point out that it was not the only case in which the WHO was recently informed of possible grievances by its own staff.
According to an external audit report presented at the current World Health Assembly, the number of internal complaints about retaliation more than doubled from 7 to 19 in one year.
The auditors are therefore calling for stronger penalties and better prevention of abuse of power.
In addition, internal complaints would have to be processed more quickly.
Transparency International and the other signatories agree and also demand a formal apology from Francesco Zambon, who revealed the cover-up report.
The whistleblower himself will no longer benefit from possible reforms.
He left the WHO in a dispute at the end of March.
Shortly before, he told SPIEGEL: “I was just doing my job.
It was our job to describe and evaluate the situation at that time independently - and not to hide the truth in order to do someone a favor. "
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