The disgraced former Oxfam boss at the centre of the charity’s sex scandal has hit back at allegations he hired prostitutes for sex parties as ‘lies and exaggerations’.
Roland van Hauwermeiren, 68, and six others left their roles at Oxfam amid claims they had used prostitutes during an aid operation in earthquake-hit Haiti.
Now Mr van Hauwermeiren has spoken to Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad about the allegations. Speaking from his home on the Belgian coast, he said: ‘Because now everything is exaggerated. And that hurts, especially because my family does not want to see me anymore.’
Meanwhile, retail giant John Lewis is threatening to cancel an aid project it is running with Oxfam involving 25,000 vulnerable women and children in Bangladesh, and Senagalese singer Baaba Maal has become the latest Oxfam ambassador to quit their role, joining Hollywood star Minnie Driver.
This is the face of the disgraced Oxfam boss Roland van Hauwermeiren, photographed while he was working in Haiti
Mr van Hauwermeiren said yestrday: ‘A lot of people – including the international media – will feel blushes when they hear my version of the facts. Not that I deny everything. Certainly not.
‘There are things that are correctly described. But I also read a lot of lies and exaggerations. Party every week? Chic villas? Women paid with money from the organisation?
‘I do not feel like reacting at all. What I see appearing everywhere is hard to bear. It hurts. It is especially very bad that my family does not want to see me anymore. But now I say too much again. ‘
After resigning from Oxfam, he went on to work for French charity Action Against Hunger in Bangladesh. There had already been complaints about Van Hauwermeiren and his use of prostitutes when he was working for the British medical charity Merlin in Liberia before joining Oxfam.
Senagalese singer Baaba Maal (pictured) became the latest Oxfam ambassador to quit their role, joining Hollywood star Minnie Driver
Today the Cabinet minister for overseas aid will meet the boss of the National Crime Agency (NCA) to discuss the Oxfam aid worker sex scandal.
International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt and NCA director-general Lynne Owens will hold private talks on how they can work together to tackle sexual exploitation and abuse as the crisis continued to engulf the charity.
Oxfam has been accused of concealing the findings of an inquiry into claims staff used prostitutes while delivering aid in earthquake-hit Haiti in 2011.
Yesterday a worker accused of sexual misconduct while working for Oxfam in Haiti that year was sacked from a role at aid charity Cafod.
The Catholic charity dismissed the man after receiving a reference from Oxfam which confirmed the allegations against him.
Meanwhile, retail giant John Lewis is threatening to cancel an aid project it is running with Oxfam involving 25,000 vulnerable women and children in Bangladesh
He was hired in 2014 and provided two references, including one sent from a private email account by someone who said they had been his manager at Oxfam.
Cafod said it had been unaware of the accusations until it was contacted recently by the Times newspaper.
‘We requested and yesterday received a reference from Oxfam GB headquarters which confirmed the allegations against him,’ CAFOD director Chris Bain said in a statement.
Singer Baaba Maal told BBC Newsnight: ‘What has happened on a human level is disgusting and heart breaking. It is very sad. Vulnerable people especially children should always be protected.
‘As such I am disassociating myself from Oxfam immediately.’
Several sponsors and partners of Oxfam including Visa and the retail chain Marks and Spencer have also said they are examining the situation.
The Times reports today that John Lewis is threatening to cancel an aid project it is running with Oxfam involving 25,000 vulnerable women and children in Bangladesh.
The retailer told The Times that it was ‘deeply concerned’ about the sex abuse scandal engulfing the charity and accusations that staff sexually exploited young women in Haiti.
The John Lewis Foundation said that it would ‘rigorously review and seek assurances from Oxfam’ regarding their £250,000-a-year joint project in the slum areas of Bangladesh that supply products to its shops.
Damien Berrendorf (pictured) was fired last year for mismanagement after allegations by whistleblowers – although they did not relate to sexual misconduct
It also emerged this week that the Oxfam official who replaced Mr van Hauwermeiren as the charity’s Haiti country director was himself dismissed last year for ‘inappropriate behaviour’.
Damien Berrendorf was fired last year for mismanagement after allegations by whistleblowers – although they did not relate to sexual misconduct.
Referring to Mr Berrendorf’s sacking, a spokesman for Oxfam said: ‘We can confirm that Damien Berrendorf was Oxfam’s country director in Haiti from 2012 to 2017.
‘He was dismissed in 2017 for mismanagement. The dismissal was not relating to sexual misconduct and was not connected to the case in 2011.
‘However, there were allegations of inappropriate behaviour. As soon as the allegations were reported via Oxfam’s whistleblowing line they were investigated and the individual dismissed.’
It is not know what the inappropriate behaviour concerned.
It comes as it emerged a charity which employed Mr van Hauwermeiren were never informed of the Oxfam allegations.
The aid worker moved to the charity Action Against Hunger after he had left his job as country director in the Caribbean.
The charity claimed that it carried out a number of checks on Mr van Hauwermeiren, although it was not informed of any inappropriate or unethical behaviour.
The Belgian nationalallegedly admitted to using prostitutes at his villa in Haiti, but was allowed a ‘phased and dignified’ resignation in 2011. He was the head of mission for Action Against Hunger in Bangladesh until 2014.
An Action Against Hunger spokesman told Sky News: ‘Action Against Hunger has a strict recruitment process which includes tests, interviews, individual references checks, and contact with former employee organisations according to French labour regulation.
‘This procedure was followed prior to the employment of Roland van Hauwermeiren. During this process, Action Against Hunger received no information regarding any inappropriate or unethical behaviour by Roland van Hauwermeiren while he was with Oxfam in Haiti, or any warning on the risks of employing him.
‘According to our records, we have not received any alerts regarding sexual misconduct or abuse during Roland van Hauwermeiren’s assignment with Action Against Hunger.
Roland van Hauwermeiren allegedly admitted to using prostitutes at his villa in Haiti (above)
‘We have now, however, begun a process to closely scrutinise the time he was employed by us, and Action Against Hunger commits to full disclosure, collaborating in full with the authorities.’ Oxfam has been contacted for comment.
It has also emerged that a leading medical charity has fired 29 staff members in the past two years over sexual abuse and harassment allegations.
Doctors Without Borders said 19 people were sacked in 2017 for sexual abuse or harassment and ten the year before.
The group, which employs 42,000 staff, won the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize and is famed for operating clinics in conflict zones. The charity said it had received 146 complaints or alerts last year and ended up sacking 19 staff members. It added that other employees were handed disciplinary measures or were suspended.
Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross yesterday admitted it could not provide ‘reliable historical data about staff misconduct’ but it was building a database to do so.