Guest essay by Eric Worrall
Greenpeace India has admitted a failure to create a “gender sensitive environment”, in the wake of allegations of serious sexual misconduct, including the alleged rape of a female Greenpeace staff member.
According to The Guardian;
The environmental group, which is already embroiled in a legal battle with the government over questions on its funding, said an internal review found lapses in how it dealt with crimes against women and gender sensitivity in the workplace.
“Greenpeace India treats issues of sexual harassment and violence seriously – and these recent allegations have shown that we need to strengthen our internal processes and our sensitivity training for staff and management,” the group said in a statement late on Tuesday.
“We are committed to a safe and equal workplace for all our staff, where people are free to work and live without harassment of any kind. As an organisation we haven’t done enough to create a shared culture of respect and sensitivity.”
The reference to a legal battle over funding probably refers to a recent government ban on Greenpeace India receiving overseas funds. The Indian government last year labelled Greenpeace India a threat to economic security.
This is the second serious sexual misconduct scandal this year to affect the Indian green movement. In February, Rajendra Pachauri resigned as chairman of the IPCC, after being accused of sexual harassment.
Matching June 16, 2015 story on OneIndia:
http://www.oneindia.com/india/sexual-harassment-rape-allegations-rock-greenpeace-1777948.html
“An ex-employee (name withheld) of Greenpeace alleged that she had to leave her job in 2013 after being sexually harassed and raped by her colleagues.”
Good find – absolutely shocking.
From the article…
However, matters came to a head in 2013. “It was after a party, when a male colleague whom I knew quite well found me unconscious and raped me. You cannot imagine the pain and fear I went through. I was terrified to speak and I knew even if I had, no one in this organisation would come to my aid. I did not have the strength to report my rape, neither to the police, nor to my employers. How could I, when the processes had failed me once already?” she asked. Traumatised, she left the NGO after a few months.
—————————–
The “found me unconscious” part is troublesome. Rape is a horrible crime but if you work in an environment of ongoing sexual harassment how do you find yourself unconscious at a company party?
I should know.
By having a problem with drugs or alcohol. Not a place for a but, rape is rape in any case.
“how do you find yourself unconscious at a company party?”
GHB?
@Hugh: Rape is rape, all right, unless that place uses a ridiculous definition of rape in its laws (for instance, Israel’s idiotic idea of “rape by fraud”).
People make mistakes – sometimes they drink too much.
Last time a semi conscious girl collapsed next to me at a party, because she’d accidentally had one too many, I woke her female housemate up, and helped the housemate carry her to bed, where her housemate made sure she was OK.
Raping someone, because they are too intoxicated to say no – what utter slime.
“Raping someone – what utter slime.”
I totally agree.
An ex-employee (name withheld) of Greenpeace alleged that she had to leave her job in 2013 after being sexually harassed and raped by her colleagues.”
We should give Greenpeace the benefit of the doubt until we learn more. “Colleagues?” Multiple? Not saying it didn’t happen, but there’s a lot of this going on…to be blunt false accusations. Don’t forget UVA.
It’s always great to see some serious push-back against those knuckle-dragging mouth-breathers. The Indians have got the right idea – cut off their funding and sling ’em out on their ear!
I’d be satisfied just to see her carry a mattress to all their demonstrations for the next year!
GREENPEACE INDIA:
“As an organisation we haven’t done enough to create a shared culture of respect and sensitivity.”
Well, that’s not surprising at all, given the total lack of “respect and sensitivity” in the propaganda battles of GREENPEACE against climate realists and other critics of their environmentalism ideology…
If they want to stop the ‘rape’ of Gaia, they should start with the basics.
But they’re Liberals. For them it’s always you do what I say, I never say what I do.
Under no circumstances should you call Greenpeace people Liberals. They are trying to foinst a socialist, State centred agenda onto the rest of us, destroying freedom. No way that is Liberal. Liberals try to look at what appears to be wrong in society, and seek remedies, noting that there is every possibility that unless though through very well, there could be unseen consequences which may make the matter worse. And they are unreservedly dedicated to freedom from excessive State control.
About the only time Greenpeace argues for ignoring State control is when their people commit piracy on the high seas, and trespass with intent to commit damage on land or sea installations.
R T Deco – please reject the notion that Greenpeace are a bunch of Liberals. They are NOT!
Dudley, your description of “liberal” doesn’t fit any liberals or progressives I’m familiar with. I think you may be describing a “classical liberal,” but those are almost extinct. Today’s liberal is a progressive who actually wants excessive state control of everything from healthcare to the environment. When’s the last time a liberal called for smaller government, fewer regulations, or less government spending? I haven’t seen that since JFK called for tax cuts in the 60s. The only time I hear liberals call for less government control is when it has to do with drug laws. But they seem fine with having government tell them how much soda they can drink or what types of free speech are allowed in the public square. If you stand for bigger government, you stand for more state control. There’s no way around that.
As for Greenpeace, I’m absolutely sure they would insist that seeking a remedy from “what appears to be wrong in society” is exactly what they are trying to do. They may be a bit more extreme than the average leftist, but how is their “state centered agenda” any different than any other liberal agenda, except, perhaps, in degree? Liberals are the ones who fund Greenpeace, sometimes even with taxpayer money. Please name a single liberal group that has come our publicly against Greenpeace. I would love to see that.
All these organizations list statements to protect against lawsuits; they have nothing to do with actual concern for their female employees. You have to ‘walk the talk’ to be credible.
First they have to recognize the total disconnect….
“Greenpeace India treats issues of sexual harassment and violence seriously – we haven’t done enough to create a shared culture of respect and sensitivity.”
Greenpeace + India = Is anyone really surprised about this?!!
CO2 made them do it. Another example of the horrors of CO2.
“A new study show that Climate Change will increase incidents of rape as women shed clothes to beat the heat.”
There is a report that a new study is claiming global warming is driving down visits to National Parks and Monuments. Seriously. Nothing was said about the soaring cost of fuel or continuing economic miasma. Nope the cause is Global Warming!
Too much champagne then?
The iron stain under the velvet antimacassar.
===========
Let’s be careful here. The merits of an ideology are not answerable to isolated actions of individuals.
e.g., there are folks this morning seriously attempting to link the Charleston church murders with “conservatism”.
IMO Greenpeace is a misguided and counterproductive movement, but there’s no logical connection between their beliefs and sexual abuse.
Just one logical connection, and it is a large one. When an individual or a group decides they should have the right to tell others how to live, how to behave, then abuse of authority over others becomes institutionalized. This abusive authority has many times resulted in abuse of women including rape.
Maybe. But that could be said for most governments and institutions in existence.
When I think of reasons why Greenpeace is wrong, “because some of its members misbehave sexually” is pretty close to the bottom of the list.
“Maybe. But that could be said for most governments and institutions in existence.”
————————————————————
Exactly!!!
——————————————————————————-
“When I think of reasons why Greenpeace is wrong, “because some of its members misbehave sexually” is pretty close to the bottom of the list.”
————————————————————–
I agree, I am just pointing out that folk (individuals and groups) that believe they have the right to tell others how to live often demonstrate an abuse of power, and that tendency to abuse often becomes focused on the physically weaker sex.
Major stretch, David A. Rape is exclusive to no ideology.
aneipris
Much appreciated.
David – rape of women is a result, but also of children, the environment, men, morals etc.
Abusive authority, exactly as you say, and it doesn’t matter where on the spectra – political, moral, economic, whatever – the abusers are found.
They have power and they abuse it.
Elements of the Chinese Communist Party, the gee-whiz computer companies of our century, Viking hordes, Latin American gangsters, and WW2 Allied Armies, have all committed rape, bullying, abuse, etc.
Note – ‘elements of’.
Auto
Yes auto, and my point is very simple, and not a stretch at all. Rape is exclusive to the ideology of control over others, as is most crime. Anepris has apparently not studied the history of war, and violence including rape when dictatorships overpower another group.
Eric, sexual misconduct is a common issue in India and not necessarely linked to the the Indian green movement.
This may be more a failing of India than of Greenpeace.
India has a problem and they know it.
Also, I feel uneasy about using a crime for political point scoring.
There is a victim here. By the sounds of it more than one.
We should be considerate, in my opinion.
India does have a problem with sexual assault, no lie about that. But I’m as unwilling to dignify Climate Change with any consideration in the absence of physical evidence as I am every other random claim of depravity of man vs. whatever. Including this one.
Also, I feel uneasy about using a crime for political point scoring.
Exactly my point above.
M Courtney: you are granting them more consideration than they would us. Hell, they even make up scandals, ask Willie Soon.
And being leftists, they are also quick to forgive themselves, ask Clinton (either).
Mark and two Cats,
Yes, I am “granting them more consideration than they would us”.
We’re the good guys, right?
An organisation which turns a blind eye to alleged serious sexual harassment and rape over an extended period may have other severe honesty deficits.
> Mark and two Cats,
> Yes, I am “granting them more consideration than they would us”.
> We’re the good guys, right?
M Courtney:
Yes and I would not counsel you to be otherwise. I was just expressing my frustration I guess.
If a crime was an isolated incident, which was properly handled, every organisation has the occasional rotten apple.
However, in this case, the alleged incidents appear to have occurred, and continued to occur, because of a systemic failure of management – a management culture which may have been more focussed on suppressing bad news, than on addressing serious internal problems .
This apparent systemic management failure is pertinent, in my opinion, when considering the credibility of Greenpeace India on other issues.
a management culture which may have been more focussed on suppressing bad news, than on addressing serious internal problems
True of many institutions. (Not to excuse this by any means)
Including some institutions we may be sympathetic with.
If I discovered an organisation whose aims I supported tolerated outrageous misbehaviour, I would be the first to expose it
You can’t build a better world on a foundation of corruption. Start as you mean to go on.
Eric, that just means you have integrity. I’ll invite you to stand over there with the other two guys we’ve found.
I think that your comment about systemic management failure is indeed pertinent and explains much about the current Greenpeace actions elsewhere and at other times. Some writer or journalist will oneday ask how did it happen that an organisation that started with such ideals , that had a member killed by a western Govt in pursuit of the ideals (Rainbow Warrior), became one where trashing other societies’ heritage (Peru) or organising attacks on scientists with whom they disagree is just accepted policy behaviour. How and why did they turn to the dark side?
One obvious answer is the influence of the vast wealth that they are believed , rightly or wrongly , to have acquired since concentrating most of their activity on the AGW debate.
Or are the average members of Greenpeace sociopaths , haters of humankind? No, the youngsters that you see collecting signatures on a saturday morning in the shopping malls look like the typical idealistic young students that any parent would take pride in.
I think that the answer is power. Such power that the leaders hold Popes, presidents and premiers in the palm of their hands, and so far as the media are concerned their word is holy writ . We all know what absolute power does and that is such a pity because I believe that the World really does need a Greenpeace or some such pressure group , but not the current model.
Eric, you didn’t expose anything. You copied some text from the (arguably very green) Guardian. This is very cheap point scoring over the backs of some victims in far away India.
Some would call that “shabby”.
Lets just say I hoped publish this horrible affair to a wider audience Wagen.
Yeah, whatever.
Nit so. The incidence of rape in India is an Indian problem. The incident of rape is a problem for the causative components of the incident (not to mention the victim!). Greenpeace is one of those components.
It’s worse than we thought!
The Indian environmentalists are stooping to the low level of Bill Clinton.
At the Greenpeace animal farm, all animals are considered to have equal rights and needs. However, it would seem that certain pigs are more equal than others.
“Greenpeace”, lets break it down,
What could it mean?
Gullible and naïve,
Well that takes care of the “green.”
“Peace” is more difficult,
A challenge we face;
Mental calm and serenity
Is hardly the case!
I find ironic that Greenpeace most famous vessel is “rainbow WARRIOR”
How about Greenpeace demanding that the law be upheld which requires investigating and, if warranted, prosecuting the rapist. Nope they opt for sensitivity training.
To be fair Greenpeace claim they have now referred all of the incidents to the police.
Feet of clay. Very rural, green so to say.
I agree with the sentiment that one bad apple shouldn’t be a sole point upon which to base an opinion of a whole organization. But, I also agree with Eric W that there is evidence that this has been prevalent in the past (i.e. signs of management, internal policy and organizational culture corruption). I’ll hazard a guess that this may only be getting action by Greenpeace India because of the publicity forcing them into it, rather than from actually “walking the talk”.
From this post, it’s clear that at least one member believed that the organization’s name was spelled Green”piece”.
I’ll go on record that I think Greenpeace (India and elsewhere) is an evil, fascist, terrorist group that does far more harm to the environmental movement than good. Good on India for recognizing that. I’ll dream that someday the US will wake up as well.
Bruce
Well that’s a first. Greenpeace, the first ecologically aware misogynist organization.
No wait, the IPCC and Rajendra Pachauri was first.
Or maybe it was a tie, they can share the award.
I am sure they were only checking if she could piss green, trying to help her do exactly that by a bit of gang bang; a perfectly natural behavior, provided one does care for the environment. Otherwise India, which used to be a cool place, is getting hot due to climate change, which, according to science, increases crime rate in a nonlinear fashion. They were merely demonstrating this very fact for the masses to see, an expression of their genuine political stance. Therefore they are nothing, but blameless victims of corporate greed.
/bitter sarc
Women feel guilty and just shut up and leave for good reason. There is a long history of rape being blamed on the woman.
In equal circumstances, beating an unconscious person has always been considered heinous. So has doing harm to a dead person. But in the not too distant past, it was okay to rape an unconscious woman. And it was okay to rape a prostitute even if she were perfectly sober. Worse, rape was not a crime when the woman’s rapist was her husband. In some states that kind of domestic beating is still never prosecuted. Slowly things are changing and rape is now considered to be equal to beating a person in some states.
Yet, women have memories of how things used to be. And so they shut up and move on.
The rise of Greenpeace and that of the Sicilian Mafia have many very similar parallels.
The Sicilian Mafia was initially a small secretive unpaid volunteer outfit, a volunteer policing unit that was organised to protect the native sicilians from the predation of criminals after the Italians who took over Sicily and subsequently Sicily’s old medieval social systems disintegrated.
Greenpeace was a small volunteer outfit that took on some larger corporations in an attempt to force them to clean up their act leading to a cleaner and better world
Even volunteer forces need some organisation and equipment to carry out their aims and that inevitable needs money so the Sicilian protection units gratefully accepted donations.
Ditto Greenpeace!
Donations after while did not cover the expanding demands of the Siclian units so donations became a mandatory from businesses and individuals particularly if they were relatively wealthy. ie taxes.
Greenpeace started to use its increasing power and influence and its penetration into government and business circles , just like the Mafia also achieved for a time, to tap into business and government tax payer funded sources for it’s funding.
At this stage some less than moral and criminally minded individuals now saw the nascent Mafia as a route to great wealth and power.
Ditto Greenpeace
If businesses or individuals refused to pay or to align their businesses with the Mafia’s demands then their business or an individual’s reputation would be wrecked; ie standover tactics.
Ditto Greenpeace’s now current modus operandi.
The Mafia slowly penetrated and took control of large sections of the legal and government and business sectors by highly secretive proxy means through the finding and using of highly embarrassing personal traits and moral weaknesses in powerful and influential individuals in large sections of the political, legal, policing, media and financial and business sectors.
Ditto Greenpeace;
The highly secretive Mafia tried to ensure that they never had to account for their income or it’s sources or pay taxes or be held legally accountable for any of their actions to the public or legal system.
Ditto a highly secretive Greenpeace.
Morality and ethics except those that reinforced the Mafia’s power base were never allowed to be a factor in guiding the Mafia’s actions;
Ditto Greenpeace as in DDT, Golden rice, Peru, the deliberate wrecking of scientific research in plant GMO’s and animal research and in the all out activists attacks on dam construction and electricity generation systems for the undeveloped world and many, many more such highly nefarious anti – human , anti development Greenpeace inspired and directed actions.
Greenpeace like the Sicilian Mafia has morphed from an organisation which in its initial stages had highly moral aims which were directed towards the betterment of all to just another wealthy, unaccountable, power hungry and corrupt to a degree rarely seen, criminally trending organisation which unlike the Mafia has yet to be held fully accountable for it’s sometimes vicious and nefarious actions and its now increasing lack of morality and ethics as it presses on in it’s lust for overweening power over as much of mankind it can achieve.
Ditto the aims of the former Mafia at its peak of power.
Rape?
How is that a crime to members of an organization that operates by what amounts to extortion?
These “charities” have been doing the same thing to the public purse everywhere they can.
The Green Gang have been blatantly breaking laws for decades, because they are “saving” the environment.
As others have noted, once your self delusion hits saturation you know you can do no wrong.. because you are saving the world.
Contempt for other persons person, rights and basic human decency are all trademarks of the Gang Green.
Greenpeas seems to be into the rape thing … also most recently caught trying to rape the truth regarding the Great Barrier Reef.
Have I missed something or was this once a science website?
“Greenpeace India treats issues of sexual harassment and violence seriously – and these recent allegations have shown that we need to strengthen our internal processes and our sensitivity training for staff and management,”
Well I do hope they have imposed “sensitivity training ” on that rapist. Such a robust defence of the less powerful is so admirable, I wonder how they really treat those even less powerful, such as animals.
@Simon I agree. I don’t think there is anything to be concluded because of the allegations with respect to the organization as a whole. Greenpeace does not have a policy of rape for its female supporters. They do, however, have a complete disregard for law and certainly do support objectives that followed to their conclusion, will result in genocide on an unheard of scale. I’m interested in the Indian government’s prying in to the funding from outside India and whether this is preparation for some kind of claim of foreign funded sedition. Now that would be a big deal and a conversation well beyond piquing everyone’s prurient blather on the definition of rape and what it means about the political worldview of everyone who knew or should have known about what might have happened.
While I would not be at all surprised given the nature of neo-Marxist activists, whether old hippies or younger people, there are false allegations around – I hope India has a good justice system.
A problem with neo-Marxist activists, which most eco-activists are, is they don’t know how to judge people.
Recall that the Occupy mob in at least one city (NYC or Vancouver BC) had to establish its own security detail because of crimes including rape. (The fool organizers couldn’t bring themselves to call city police.)