UN Volker Turk
Collaborated in Banning
Press Now His Conflicts of
Interest Listed No Answer
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
UN GATE,
June 5 – 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.
Potential
Conflicts of Interest at OHCHR
1. Early
Connections and Career
Foundations - Maarit Kohonen
Sherif (Finland) served as
Chef de Cabinet under High
Commissioner Zeid Ra’ad Al
Hussein. - Mohamed Alnsour was
brought into Zeid’s front
office and later became P5
Chief of the MENA Section. -
Maarit’s husband, Mohammed
Sherif began his career as GS
staff in the MENA Section,
where Alnsour was his
superior. He was promoted to
P2, then transferred to the
OHCHR East Africa Office in
Addis Ababa, where he was
rapidly promoted from P3 to
P4.
But wait
there's more: Matthias
Behnke served as Junior
professional officer to
Volker Turk when the latter
was UNHCR representative in
Sarajevo in the 1990s.
2. Matthias
Behnke’s Career Path -
Matthias Behnke (Denmark)
served as P5 Head of the OPT
Office. - He later transferred
to Geneva, becoming P5 Chief
of Section in the Africa
Branch, where Maarit was also
a P5 Chief of Section. -
Maarit was promoted to D1
Africa Branch Director, and
eventually to D2 Director of
Global Operations. - Matthias
was recently appointed as D1
Chief, Americas, Europe and
Central Asia Branch, reporting
to Maarit.
NOTE: UN
Spokespeople and Officials
have been asked in writing
about all of this, with a
request for confirmation of
receipt and response. So far,
nothing. Names to follow.
Yet more! Azra
Behnke was Volker Turk’s
assistant in UNHCR in Bosnia
in the late ‘90s., where
Matthias was a Danish
sponsored UNV. Turk brought
Azra to UNHCR in Geneva from
where she moved to OHCHR
3. Personal Ties
and Workplace Overlap - Maarit
is married to Mohammed Sherif.
- Matthias Behnke is married
to Azra Behnke, who now serves
as Maarit’s assistant,
creating a triangle of
influence between Maarit,
Matthias, and Azra. - This
close-knit group could be
described as a clique, with
Maarit as the informal
leader.
4. Yasmine Abou
Mansour’s Rapid Rise -
Yasmine, who previously worked
with Matthias in the OPT
Office, was brought to Geneva
by him. - She started as a
temporary P3, was regularized,
and then promoted to P4 by
Alnsour—all within the MENA
Section. - Later, Alnsour
facilitated her promotion to
P5 Special Assistant to the
Deputy High Commissioner, who,
like Alnsour, is
Jordanian.
5. Alnsour’s
Controversial Career - Alnsour
has been the subject of
several investigations. -
Despite this, he was promoted
to D1 in the OHCHR Iraq
Office, but returned to his
previous role as Chief of MENA
Section after the Iraq office
closed. Summary of
Potential Conflicts of
Interest - Interpersonal
relationships (marriages,
friendships, national ties)
appear to have played a
significant role in career
advancements. - Maarit,
Matthias, and Alnsour have all
been in positions to influence
each other’s careers or those
of their close associates. -
The promotion of spouses and
former colleagues into key
roles under direct or indirect
supervision raises ethical
concerns about nepotism and
favoritism. - The
investigations into Alnsour
further complicate the
integrity of these career
progressions
This is the
UN of Guterres.
Turk as a staffer
on Guterres' 38th floor did
nothing when his boss Guterres
had the critical Press roughed
up and thrown out. There
has been no due process since,
not even a response to Guterres'
Melissa Fleming to a pro bono inquiry
for Inner City Press from the
law firm Quinn Emanuel. Some
human righters.
***
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