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by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack

UN GATE, April 24 – How corrupt is today's UN under Antonio Guterres? Now with Guterres just back from a junket blathering about the rule of law while banning the Press, his staff tell Inner City Press things have hit a new low about which his spokespeople Stephane Dujarric and Melissa Fleming refuse all Press questions.

This is about UNDT/2026/042: 438 staff members challenged the removal or expiration of their roster status. The Tribunal dismissed the application as not receivable, relying on three technical grounds: the prohibition of collective applications, the characterization of the impugned measure as a regulatory act, and the finding that the alleged harm was hypothetical. 

This judgment fails to confront the underlying institutional reality. The unprecedented appearance of 438 staff members in a single proceeding is not a procedural anomaly—it is compelling evidence of systemic failure.  The Administration’s reliance on procedural barriers to defeat collective claims exposes a structural deficiency in the internal justice system. Staff are effectively denied access to justice at scale, forced into fragmented individual litigation that is inefficient, inequitable, and deterrent by design.  More fundamentally, the case reflects a deep and widening fracture between staff and senior leadership, including the Secretary-General’s administration in the history of the United Nations, compounded by management negligence in listening to staff voices and to give no   attention for the duty of care of the staff at large.

The absence of meaningful engagement with staff representatives, coupled with the failure to resolve grievances through informal channels, demonstrates an institutional unwillingness to act in good faith. It is complete managerial bankruptcy and failure of the oversight body!  An organization that publicly champions human rights, fairness, and freedom of expression cannot credibly sustain internal practices that suppress collective voice, marginalize staff representation, or intimidate those seeking justice. 

This case lays bare a critical governance gap requiring urgent redress under the UN80 reform agenda and should rank among the highest priorities for all candidates seeking the office of Secretary-General: Establish a legal framework for collective or representative actions, ensuring that systemic grievances affecting large groups of staff can be addressed efficiently and fairly. Mandate structured, good-faith engagement with staff representatives, replacing adversarial “cat-and-mouse” dynamics with recognized labour-relations standards. Provide mandatory training for managers on freedom of association, duty of care, and respectful workplace practices, ensuring that staff are not subjected to retaliation for expressing legitimate concerns. The very existence of the anti-racist office, 

Strengthen informal dispute resolution mechanisms, with clear accountability where management fails to engage constructively before matters escalate to litigation. Introduce term limits for senior leadership (D1 and above, including D2, ASG, and USG) to enhance accountability, prevent institutional entrenchment, and promote equitable opportunities across Member States. It is untenable that officials receiving over 25,000 USD per month remain in such positions for periods exceeding a decade. A maximum tenure of three years should be considered. Prolonged incumbency, particularly in the absence of demonstrable performance, undermines institutional efficiency

  Reinforce - actually, begin - internal adherence to freedom of expression, ensuring that staff and their representatives can raise concerns without fear of retaliation or marginalization. Ensure full compliance by UN officials with ILO principles and declarations, particularly regarding labor rights and representation.  Conclusion:   The mobilization of 438 staff members is not a procedural inconvenience—it is an institutional indictment. Failure to act on this signal will further erode trust, legitimacy, and the credibility of the Organization’s internal justice system. UN80 reform—under the leadership of the incoming Secretary-General—must transcend rhetoric and impose real, enforceable structural accountability.

But will it, under these candidates which can't even answer a questionnaire about accountability, and censorship?

This is about inequitable cuts at UN ESCAP in Thailand:

Dear Matthew Russell Lee, 

The plan for abolishment from UN-ESCAP  is directed only at GS staff, while senior positions—P-5, D-1, D-2, and USG—remain untouched. The salary of a single one of these officials is equivalent to that of fifty or more local staff members. If justice truly mattered, it would be these high-level posts under review—not the livelihoods of ordinary staff.

Many of these officials are beyond retirement age, largely inactive in their offices, while their administrative assistants act more like personal aides or cooks than contributors to the Organization’s actual work.  This is not about fairness—it is about selfishness and corruption. Guterres and his team have revealed themselves as weak, wicked, and corrupt. They cling to their privileges while sacrificing the most vulnerable staff, simply because they hold the power to decide.  It is therefore no surprise that more and more staff are coming to agree that the UN has become useless, especially under the failed leadership of Guterres.

 Guterres appears increasingly surrounded by what staff describe as “phone-call human resource advisors and legal officers.”

   Martha Helena Lopez, the Secretary-General’s senior advisor on human resources, has become emblematic of this “don’t care” policy. Observers note she looks fatigued, more focused on retirement than on strengthening governance. Rather than engaging with tribunal rulings, she and her team have defaulted to what staff now mockingly call “phone-call directives,” issuing guidance over the phone without regard to established precedent or proper review.  In New York, staff have started referring to her and her legal colleagues as “phone-call officers and advisors” because of their casual approach to matters of grave consequence.

Their advice to the Secretary-General effectively shields misconduct from judicial scrutiny, entrenches his culture of impunity.

 Guterres, they say, should end censorship. Application was made on June 19, 2025. Watch this site.

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