| UN Volker Turk
Collaborated in Banning
Press As He Promotes Cronies
& Closes in Colombia
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
UN GATE,
Dec 2 – How corrupt and
decrepit has the UN system
become under Antonio Guterres,
in this case due to Guterres?
Today's example is again from
the Office of the High
Commission for Human Rights,
to which Guterres appointed
his unqualified crony Volker
Turk more than two years ago.
From OHCHR
staff: Dear Matthew Russell
Lee, There is no management
accountability in OHCHR.
The office is its worst
crisis ever while posts are
granted for cronies.
Nada Al Nashif in a message to
all staff on 30 November
says “OHCHR is not a
downsizing” as it is only
targeted and discriminatory
dismissals. Deputy High
Commissioner, “soulless” Nada
Al Nashif, wrote to all staff
to update us on the financial
situation.
OHCHR deficit has
doubled in one year from 45
million USD to 97 even though
most temporary staff and most
junior colleagues have been
fired during 2025, mainly
young women. Volker Turk, Nada
Al Nashif, Maarit Kohonen and
Kim Taylor, have used OHCHR to
promote their friends and
relatives while the boat
sinks. The reality is that Kim
Taylor, who lied in her PHP
and gave false testimony
against whistleblower Emma
Reilly, favored hiring her
boyfriend to a fix-term post,
Maarit Kohonen helped her
husband to be promoted from P1
to P4.
Maarit Kohonen
has also recently promoted her
favorite Abdul Aziz Thioye to
be her deputy post in Geneva
for which he is not qualified
(and it is an empty
post). Nada Al Nashif is
known for favoring her fellow
compatriots. Michael
Camilleri was brought from
USAID to a D1 post although he
had no human rights experience
nor UN experience
. Scott Campbell,
another favorite, was promoted
to a D1 post to head the
office in Colombia although he
does not speak Spanish
language and the Colombia
office has lost over 60% of
its staff due to budget cuts
(was it really necessary to
promote and bring Campbell
when so many jobs in Colombia
were being abolished?) But the
fish in OHCHR stinks from the
head. Volker Turk has insisted
in opening an office in his
home town of Vienna where some
of his favorites, like
Francesco Motta, have already
been deployed although there
is no host country agreement
signed with the Austrian
government so any deployment
is putting staff at risk in
the absence of immunities and
privileges.
The rumor is that
Turk’s plan B is a post in
Austria. Isn’t this conflict
of interest? Wait, there is
more as nepotism is
widespread. Turk’s other
notorious protégées include
Azra and Matthias Behnke for
whose marriage Turk was the
best man. Azra has been
promoted several times and
serves under Maarit Kohonen.
Matthias Behnke, brags that he
will be promoted to director
of the Americas although he
has no experience there. The
truth is that dozens of junior
staff were fired this year
while not one single P5, D1 or
D2 post was abolished. Behnke
just promoted a fellow Danish
to a P5 in Panama (how many
Finns and Danish have been
promoted to lead teams under
Matthias Behnke and Maarit
Kohonen) Now Nada Al Nashif
announced that 2026 (is she
not leaving?) will be
even worse and fixed term
contracts will also be
abolished.
Nada al Nashif
says that “OHCHR is not
downsizing”, which of course
we know as downsizing means
abolishing posts at all
levels, not only junior ones.
Most of those fired are young
women and national staff,
while men are promoted to
unnecessary D1s, isn’t this
discriminatory? No one care
for OHCHR staff and our
families. Earmarked funds for
the field are deviated to pay
cronies posts in Geneva under
dubious “cost recovery”
practice instituted by Nada al
Nashif, Kim Taylor and Maarit
Kohonen.
In the meantime
field offices are closed while
cronies posts maintained (in
Colombia all field offices
have been forced to shut
down). Member states
should hold the current
management accountable.
As Volker Turk’s term ends
barely in 9 months (in
September 2026), he should be
replaced by a proper High
Commissioner, someone who
cares about human rights and
who cares about OHCHR.
In the meantime Turk remains
silent to human rights
violations...
Inner City Press
re-applied to re-enter the UN
on June 19, 2025 - no answer
at all from Melissa Fleming,
Tel Mekel, Stephane Dujarric.
Today's UN is corrupt.
***
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