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International Red Cross: The Ethics of Abuse

The International Committee of the Red Cross (IRC) has just terminated or accepted the resignations of 21 paid staff members. All 21 have been charged with acts of sexual misconduct for acts that were committed over a period of three years.  Perhaps it’s time to discuss the ethics of abuse – or lack thereof.

The Ethics of AbuseThe director-general of the agency, Yves Daccord, said the day the individuals resigned or were dismissed from the aid agency was “a difficult but important day.” When you think about the ethics of abuse, I will agree that the day must have been quite difficult. It remains to be seen if it was an “important day,” at that is what is important to discuss.

The Ethics of Abuse – Widespread Abuse

If it were just one agency, albeit an important one such as the IRC, we might say that there was a “momentary” organizational collapse that has been rectified. However, recent child and sexual abuse scandals at Plan International, Oxfam, UNICEF and even Save the Children have been uncovered. The ethical breakdown is widespread and it is tragic. In fact, it was the scandals at the other agencies that convinced Mr. Daccord to conduct an internal review going back to 2015. Incidentally the International Red Cross code of conduct forbids the purchase of sexual services since 2006.

Said Mr. Daccord:

“I have instructed my teams to scour the data we do have on sexual misconduct, and I can tell you that since 2015 we’ve identified 21 staff members who were either dismissed for paying for sexual services or resigned during an internal enquiry.”

The IRC employs about 17,000 staff members worldwide. They are supposed to be the advocates and the gatekeepers to prevent sexual exploitation. It is impossible to know if the 21 individuals represent all of the abusers or if they were the only individuals actually identified. Reports are that two additional staff members, under contract, did not have their contracts renewed, bringing the total to 23.  This is the fallout from the ethics of abuse.

Said Mr. Daccord:

“This behavior is a betrayal of the people and the communities we are there to serve. It is against human dignity and we should have been more vigilant in preventing this.”

Sexual abuse is never acceptable, and in poverty-stricken countries especially, paid sexual services, prostitution is exploitive and dangerous. The countries in which the IRC operates are extremely poor and even if there is an agreement to pay for services, there is always an underlying tone of “power” used as a tool to take advantage of those who are weak and have no voice.  Power most commonly is the driving factor behind the ethics of abuse.

The Ethics of Abuse – Positions of Power

Those staff members who work for international humanitarian agencies are, in the eyes of the people being served, are very rich and very powerful. Americans, by and large, cannot comprehend the levels of poverty of the populace that the IRC serves. Even the poorest in inner-cities or Appalachia cannot fully envision the plight of those in the Third World. A pittance paid to a person living in poverty in return for their “sexual favors” is a transaction based in power. We don’t know this for fact, but it would be beyond the realm of reality for the staff member paying for services to promise the victim extra food or medicine or other necessities. Conversely, there might also be threats in place; a withholding of supplies or food for victims not agreeing to sexual abuse.

There is no naivete here. The staff members knew of their power and influence. In the larger picture, the activities of the 23 individuals taint the entire organization and diminish any trust or credibility.

I referred earlier to Mr. Daccord calling the day of all of the dismissals as being an “important day.” I fail to understand what made it “important.” Without meaningful ethical training and on-going ethics programs in place, the activities will repeat themselves over and over again. As proof for my contention is the fact that several agencies, all in similar service areas, that have all been seen as being abusive and exploitive. Though 23 abusers may be fired, 23 more could very well take their place.

When humanitarians become abusers, those most affected are victims several times over. Only ethical training will prevent it, nothing else.

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  • Carrie Casey says:

    It is devastating to know that people who are in need of the Red Cross can’t feel assured that their needs will be taken care of but because of people abuse their power it makes it hard for others to work internationally with organization like the Red Cross. It is disgusting to know that people working for the red cross can withhold vital supplies from these third world countries so they can get sexual favors is appalling. There must be some standard established by the Red cross for morality and integrity when our people or any person goes into another countries to help those in need. According to the book, Ethical Responsibility in Human Communication, “moral motivation involves a degree of commitment to ding the moral act, preferring the ethical standards when in conflict with other values and taking personal moral responsibility for consequences of the act” (Johannesen, Valde, Wehbee, 2018,pp. 9).

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