Carina Perelli, the Director of the United Nations Electoral Assistance Division, received a letter Tuesday morning informing her of the Secretary-Generals decision to summarily dismiss her for misconduct, a spokesman for the world body announced Tuesday.
The decision took immediate effect, Stephane Dujarric said at UN Headquarters in New York. Asked about the charges against Ms. Perelli, he confirmed that the complaints included allegations of harassment, including sexual harassment, and abuse of authority.
The charge letter was sent to Ms. Perelli on 4 August. The standard extension is two weeks, but in this case, following a number of extensions, she responded on 17 November, Mr. Dujarric said.
Asked how the dismissal would affect UN support for the Iraqi elections, the spokesman said it should not affect the UNs electoral work in Iraq or anywhere else.
He noted that Craig Jenness of Canada serves as International Commissioner on the Independent Electoral Commission for Iraq and leads the UN effort on the Iraqi elections. Mr. Jenness leads a team of 24 international electoral staff currently in Baghdad.
Asked about the UNs zero-tolerance policy on sexual harassment, the spokesman said that each case is analyzed and assessed on its own merits. The UN has a duty to act when these matters arise, he said.
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March 30: The UNs top elections official, Carina Perelli, presided over a department whose leadership tolerated sexual harassment, misused office funds and engaged in favoritism, a confidential management review of the electoral assistance division says.
The findings tainted the reputation of a senior UN official who has been praised by the United States and other countries for helping to carry out recent elections in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories.
The review, conducted by a Swiss consulting firm, said Perellis current and former employees described the units working atmosphere as “abusive” and “offensive.” One staff member characterized the elections division as an “unhealthy family.”
The 22-page report, based on interviews with 29 current and former employees, said Perelli was “admired for her personal courage, for her knowledge of the issues and her willingness to share that knowledge.”
But it charges that she contributed to creating an “offensive” work environment in which staffers are subject to unwanted sexual advances and a “constant sexual innuendo is part of the fabric” of the units daily life.
Staffmembers said of Perelli, 48, of Uruguay, that she felt she could act with impunity because she was one of the highest-ranking UN officials from the developing world.
The report said that Perelli essentially divided her office into an “inner circle” of employees who enjoyed special privileges and an “outer circle” subject to harsh treatment.
“Many staff have suffered emotionally as a result of the director’s behavior,” it said. They said working there “has been nothing short of a devastating experience and that the work environment of the division is abusive.”
Perelli and members of the inner circle also spent unit resources to assign one political affairs officer and some secretaries to routinely run personal errands and pay their private bills, the report said.
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