08.06.16
Gemini version available ♊︎Francis Gurry — Like Benoît Battistelli — Compared to Sepp Blatter of FIFA
Attacks on whistleblowers and/or on staff unions inside international organisations is not just an EPO thing
Summary: The actions of Francis Gurry discredit the UN and do a disservice to everyone in the same way that Battistelli’s terrible actions discredit Europe and threaten Europe’s industry
THE EPO‘s members of staff are having breaks this summer (there’s no shortage of those), so SUEPO has not been saying much in nearly a month. It would be hard to organise protests right now. Those who should be held accountable are probably not even at the Office.
This morning SUEPO mentioned USF [1, 2, 3] (yet again), having also caught up with AMBA’s response to Battistelli's persistent attacks, culminating in ‘exile’ (see this leaked message).
“Those who should be held accountable are probably not even at the Office.”No doubt we’ll return to covering the EPO affairs pretty soon (there’s a lot more in store). In the mean time, here is the bit about WIPO, whose staff's situation is in many ways similar to that of the EPO's staff (including Battistelli-Gurry overlaps).
“The USF published an article entitled “WIPO – Stop union-busting and stop retaliation against whistleblowers”,” SUEPO wrote today (there is also a French version). To quote the English-speaking page:
In September 2014 the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Francis Gurry, fired WIPO Staff Council President, Moncef Kateb, as he was about to reveal damaging information about fraud, wrongdoing, mismanagement and theft of staff DNA. Now Gurry is trying to close down the Staff Council and replace it with a new compliant, management-friendly model.
Gurry decided to set up his own WIPO Staff Council and is currently preparing illegal elections in order to dislodge the current duly elected Staff Council which is too critical for his liking. This will leave WIPO staff deprived of the last independent voice that is prepared to expose bad practices and abuse of power in this United Nations Specialized Agency.
It is a desperate move by Gurry at a time when attempts are being made to cover up and suppress an investigation report, apparently containing adverse findings on allegations made against him. It follows a public hearing at the US Congress at which he was compared to Sepp Blatter, the former President of FIFA, and a letter from the heads of several bipartisan sub-committees demanding his dismissal.
We need your support.
Please tell Gurry to stop retaliation against whistleblowers and the legally elected Staff Council. Please tell the WIPO Member States to call for Gurry’s resignation. The credibility of the Organization, its Member States and the entire UN system is at stake.
So even Gurry was “compared to Sepp Blatter, the former President of FIFA,” making Battistelli a little jealous perhaps (now they have competition, after Gurry beat Battistelli to the WIPO position). Who will be the first to end up like Blatter? Will it be Gurry or Battistelli? Will it eventually be both? █
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