U.N. To Reopen Investigation Into Allegations Of Sexual Assault By UNAIDS Official; Agency Places Key Witness On Administrative Leave

CNN: U.N. reopens sexual assault investigation into top official Luiz Loures
“The United Nations is to reopen an investigation into allegations of sexual assault by one of its top officials after the original inquiry, criticized as ‘deeply flawed’ by his accuser, cleared him earlier this year. The claims against Luiz Loures, an assistant secretary general, will be re-examined ‘as part of a broader investigation in the light of additional allegations,’ the U.N. said. … The original case centered on claims by Martina Brostrom, an employee of the U.N. global anti-AIDS program, where Loures was deputy executive director…” (4/27).

The Guardian: U.N. suspends key witness in alleged sexual assault inquiry
“A key witness in a sexual assault investigation involving a U.N. assistant secretary general has been suspended from her job, in a move campaigners say is a show of ‘pure intimidation tactics.’ … Miriam Maluwa, who has worked for the U.N. for more than 25 years, was placed on administrative leave from her post as country director for UNAIDS in Ethiopia on 27 March. In a letter from the agency she was told this action did not amount to disciplinary measures, but that UNAIDS would be conducting a management and operational review of the country’s office during her absence. … Last year, Maluwa was a key witness in an investigation into sexual assault and harassment allegations involving the UNAIDS deputy director, Luiz Loures, who was alleged to have assaulted a colleague in a hotel lift…” (Ratcliffe, 4/30).

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