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Irish Red Cross vs Blogger
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Disgraceful. It's really a sad state of affairs when you have to wonder about whether your charitable donations are being used correctly, particularly to well established organisations like that. I wonder what the IFRC make of it, and what their policies are in relation to national societies who are doing things like this.
I think the International Federation of Red Cross Societies and the International Red Cross are as frustrated with the Irish Red Cross as many of the members are, whilst they do have power to sanction the Irish Red Cross they are slow to do this as after all it is probably one of the smallest National Societies they have. Also when one considers the lack of respect shown in the past to senior members visiting Ireland from the League it is no wonder that our reputation is well and truly tainted.
Also our unwillingness as a National Society to enforce resolutions of the over the years was noted with great concern. A good example was the Anti Mine campaign in which the Irish Red Cross was brought screaming into the campaign at a late hour. Also when one looks at the conflict in our own Country the Irish Red Cross had virtually no contact with our colleagues in the British Red Cross until myself and a few others developed a relationship in the 1990's and that was met with some aggression from some in the management as they only wanted First Aid and that was it.0 -
I see that Mr Gogarty has made comments on boards in response to De Vore whilst it is is good to see a politician respond to such as sensitive issue perhaps he is not aware that his party sits on the board of the Irish Red Cross.
The Government have nominees representing the green party on the board. I would have thought the least that would be expected form a party nominee is a report back to the party detailing the irregularities and goings on in Red Cross and the seriousness of the court case against Google and of course the serious allegations against the Society by many members past and present.
The Blog which questions reform within the Red Cross appears to be now a regular read World wide so I believe that it may be time for the Green Party and others to have a talk to their representatives on the board of Red Cross and get to grips with their failure to act !0 -
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I've put Noel Wardick and Paul Gogarty in touch with each other. Names are being prepared so that questions can be asked.
The Minister said he couldnt intervene but look what has been dropped in my inbox:
The Act which established the Red Cross, is the Red Cross Act, 1938. In Section 1, subsection (2), it states;Red Cross Act wrote:(2) The Government may by the establishment order make provision in relation to all or any of the following matters, that is to say:—
( a ) the powers of the Society;
( b ) the organization of the Society;
( c ) the management and administration of the affairs of the Society by a governing body;
( d ) the delegation to such governing body of the power to make rules for the Society;
( e ) the holding of annual and other meetings of the Society;
( f ) the finances and accounts of the Society;
( g ) any other matters in relation to the Society in respect of which it appears to the Government desirable and proper that provision should be made.
Point ( g ) could not not be more clear cut in applying to the current affairs, and mal-governance of the IRC.
Further, the minister may claim that the Federation of the Red Cross societies would be against any interventions by government.
However in recent days, the government of South Korea have intervened in the case of almost an identical scenario as is happening here;
Red Cross hit for improper use of Haiti donations
By Bae Ji-sook
The Korean National Red Cross (KNRC) came under fire for its slack management of funds for the victims of the Haiti earthquake.
It has spent only 1.2 billion won ($1 million) or 12.8 percent of the 9.7 billion won in total donations raised so far though it has been nine months since the natural disaster took place, according to Rep. Kang Myung-soon of the Grand National Party.
Most of the money spent so far was used to cover the costs for activities by the medical teams, Kang said. During an audit by the National Assembly into the government-subsidized organization Tuesday, the improper use of donations was uncovered.
Of the total funds, 6.6 billion won has been sitting idly in two term deposit accounts, and only a negligible amount of money has been used to directly assist the Haiti victims.
Of the 1.2 billion won, only 675 million won has been used to benefit the victims firsthand through the international Red Cross, while the rest covered the airfare for the international Red Cross medical team, and other operational costs, she said.
The lawmaker also denounced the organization for providing high-end hotel lodging for the medical team in the Dominican Republic before they crossed the Haitian border. She claimed that they stayed at a pricey hotel and even consumed six bottles of soju at 10,000 won per bottle.
“They should have been more prudent in spending money collected through the goodwill of ordinary donators,” she said.
The Red Cross was also blamed for saving the leftover donations in the bank. Two accounts hold 3.3 billion won each. “Why would the Red Cross need to save it in a bank when there are people in need of assistance that the money could provide? The organization promised to spend the money by next year, but I seriously doubt that,” she said.
For its part, the Red Cross explained that it had deposited the money for interest gains.
“In the case of the earthquake in China or Tsunami in the Southeast Asian countries, the money was spent over a period of several years. International experts also confirmed that Haiti’s recovery will take years,” said Yoo Chong-ha, head of the KNRC. “We have tried to benefit from even the smallest interest the bank could give us to last over the long term,” he added.
“The money has been spent on delivering blood and other medical supplies. We have also supported rebuilding housings through the international Red Cross. We will make the most use of the fund,” the organization later stated.
The International Federation of Red Cross societies doesn't seem to mind the Korean government intervening, so if the minister claims that they would, then that is also untrue.
I've been up the walls busy today, so haven't had much time to look into it, I'll try and get you a comprehensive summary over the weekend at some stage.0 -
I emailed the International Federation of Red Cross societies to try and get them to comment on the situation.
Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is xxxxxxxxxxxx, and I am a donator to the Irish Red Cross.
However in recent months I have become completely disillusioned by the self serving actions of the Irish branch of the society.
I will not go into the details as I am sure you are more than aware of the recent scandals, involved, such as the misuse of large sums of funds.
However, my main concern right now, is there seems to be nothing being done about the extremely poor governance standards in the Irish Red Cross. One man, Noel Wardick, has stood up and blown the whistle on the poor standards in the society. As a result, a true humanitarian, is being forced out of his job. This situation is despicable in my mind, and severely damages the credibility of the Red Cross
I am also concerned that the Red Cross is pursuing Google in the Irish courts, for IP address of people who have commented on Noels blog. This is also of great concern, as it shows a lack of willingness on the Red Cross to reform, and rather, they would like to punish those who have tried to draw attention to the issues. This is a complete waste of resources, particularly given Google is one of the Irish Red Cross' benefactors.
So I would really appreciate a reply, as to where The International Federation of the Red Cross stands on the issue.
Yours Faithfully,
xxxxxxxxxxxxx
However, it seems they are either unwilling, or unable to intervene.Dear Mr. xxxxxxxxxx,
Thank you for your message and for sharing your concerns with us.
As you probably know, IFRC is a membership organisation of independent national societies that operate following their statutes and the country legal base. The IFRC has the responsibility to "encourage and promote in every country the establishment and development of an independent and duly recognised National Society" (IFRC Constitution, 2007).
In fulfilling that task the IFRC has been at the full disposal and support of Irish RC, in the last years during their difficult period of reviewing their legal base and structure.
IFRC and Irish RC are in full accordance on the necessary steps to take to modernise the National Society. We hope that the new leadership will go ahead with the implementation of such changes.
As per your concerns in regard to HR management of Irish RC, we are not in the position to either interfere or comment as that is an internal matter of an independent organisation.
Hope this is of help
Best
________________________________________________________
Rudina Pema, Senior Regional Advisor, Europe
Governance Support Department
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
Although I think if a few more people email them, then, it will at least put them under pressure, into perhaps speaking to the Irish management about it.
If anyone else wants to contact them directly, they can email her at rudina.pema at ifrc dot org
or you could email the head of the European office directly anitta.underlin at ifrc dot org
I really think the more pressure we can put on the Irish management the better. An email expressing your dissatisfaction could only take 2 or 3 minutes, but could make a difference, if it puts the Irish management into the international federations spotlight.0 -
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So they arent answerable to the international red cross... nor (apparently, though its a lie) to the Irish Government???
What are then they? Super-Chuggers??
DeV.0 -
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Join Date:Posts: 29920
By the way, Noel refused to attend his disciplinary hearing today as its being led by the person he accused!
So so so wrong. *shakes head*
DeV.0 -
So they arent answerable to the international red cross... nor (apparently, though its a lie) to the Irish Government???
What are then they? Super-Chuggers??
DeV.
Well they should at the very least be answerable to their donors. So if enough of us email them, email of representatives, and email media outlets, then hopefully we can put enough pressure and spotlight on them that they might actually reconsider their recent actions.
This is also the most effective time to put them in the spotlight, as they go to the public to look for donations in the run up to Christmas.0 -
By the way, Noel refused to attend his disciplinary hearing today as its being led by the person he accused!
So so so wrong. *shakes head*
DeV.
Yeah, its ridiculous alright. Its the equivalent of an assault victim being tried by the person who they accused of assaulting them. Its lunacy.0 -
i cant believe these mother f.uckers
ive donated a number of times and this is how it ends up /
Im emailing the c.unts right now .0 -
I've stopped my donations - especially after getting no response from emailing them.0
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Listen folks lets get this all in context I am a life member of the Irish Red Cross and would under no circumstances trust the current administration with a postage stamp. They have proved over the last decade to be unworthy of any financial support from donors or state, they have no accountability and will do absolutely anything and I mean anything to shut up anyone that speaks out of turn.
However, I am one of the most committed members of the Red Cross Internationally and fully support this organisations work outside Ireland it saves so many lives every day! It is one of the most significant organisations in the World who has the power to make change. But this organisation is bigger than any individual, or group of individuals. It shall not nor should not be built around me or anyone else.
If the current management group and those associated with them had any guts at all they should resign now! Well done Noel!0 -
Despite the position adopted by the IFRC and reported on in the comment above they DO have a role to play in the Irish Red Cross mess.
Let me quote from their letter as reported above "The IFRC has the responsibility to encourage and promote in every country the establishment and development of an independent and duly recognised National Society. (IFRC Constituion, 2007)". I purposefully highlighted the word 'development'. The IFRC is more than aware that the Irish Red Cross is being badly misgovernend and mismanaged and that the 'development' of the Irish Red Cross is in full scale reverse. IFRC cannot ignore this fact and under their own Constitution, as stated above, they MUST intervene to protect the Irish Red Cross and ensure its proper 'development'. There is no lacking a legal basis for this intervention under Red Cross rules but what is lacking is a willingness and interest to do so. As a result the Irish Red Cross plummets downwards and in doing so damages the whole Red Cross Movement globally.0 -
Also our unwillingness as a National Society to enforce resolutions of the over the years was noted with great concern. A good example was the Anti Mine campaign in which the Irish Red Cross was brought screaming into the campaign at a late hour. Also when one looks at the conflict in our own Country the Irish Red Cross had virtually no contact with our colleagues in the British Red Cross until myself and a few others developed a relationship in the 1990's and that was met with some aggression from some in the management as they only wanted First Aid and that was it.
This came up in yer mans blog. Whats all this about 'obsessed with first aid'?0 -
This came up in yer mans blog. Whats all this about 'obsessed with first aid'?
May I explain. the principle function of the Irish Red Cross for several decades has been to promote and enhance the role of the organisation in the delivery of training in First Aid, whilst this is a notable function it is only one of the functions of a Red Cross Society.
The Red Cross has as its Principle function the need to ensure that all of its members are fully aware of its mandatory requirements as laid down in the Principles of the Red Cross and other legislations as laid down by the conference of National Societies. The guidelines for National Societies and its functions can be found in the International Handbook, which every branch of the Red Cross should have. The primary requirement for all members should be that they have a full knowledge of the principles. No such training or guidance is given to Irish Red Cross members.
Each Red Cross member should also be familiar with the need of the Society to be wholly Neutral under International Statutes and laws (see Geneva Conventions) and also see obligations for recognition of National Societies by the Henry Dunant Institute.
I as a member of Red Cross have seen over the years the Irish Red Cross primary function as being only a First Aid organisation no different from many of the other training organisations.
When Juanita Majury a wonderful former staff member built up a large membership of Youth Red Cross the management saw this as a risk to their power base which was uniformed units so the Youth Department was summarily dismantled and Juanita left but not without expressing her concerns to the management. To be honest they could not have cared less !
So I hope this explains my point !0 -
Many will wonder what is happening with the Red Cross, surely with so many questions in the Dail re: poor governance and concerns dating back three decades about misuse of funds that surely the management would themselves be seeking an independent inquiry into these allegations.
Well, that is what would happen in the real ideal world, where any suggestion of imp-priority would be immediately met with full disclosure so that any notion of concern would be dispelled.
But this is the Irish Red Cross we are dealing with who are suggesting in their lack of action that this State should change its policy re: any financial allegations and basically forget all the past and start a new no matter what. Certainly this would suit many of the court cases being brought against certain public representatives over land deals in Dublin in the early 90's. Isn't it a pity they were not members of the Red Cross management. If they were all they would have to do is sack the odd Secretary General and staff members and then threaten the hell out of members then tell the Minister of the day they are looking into the matter and then all is forgiven easy as that.
And of course if any member in the future would dare to question the past they have the ability to easily hide behind the adage we are independent of State and are Neutral and none of our records are accessible by anyone even our Council members cannot see the records so all is good.
But who would ever have thought there would have been a Tsunami, well I truly believe that there is one about to hit the Irish Red Cross and I have no guilt whatsoever in seeking the truth and the removal of the members who have brought us to this place. The victims of the real Tsunami needed the money that sat in Tipperary and an oversight really doesn't excuse this gross contempt of them. But if only it was the first time and we know it was not.0 -
May I explain. the principle function of the Irish Red Cross for several decades has been to promote and enhance the role of the organisation in the delivery of training in First Aid, whilst this is a notable function it is only one of the functions of a Red Cross Society.
The Red Cross has as its Principle function the need to ensure that all of its members are fully aware of its mandatory requirements as laid down in the Principles of the Red Cross and other legislations as laid down by the conference of National Societies. The guidelines for National Societies and its functions can be found in the International Handbook, which every branch of the Red Cross should have. The primary requirement for all members should be that they have a full knowledge of the principles. No such training or guidance is given to Irish Red Cross members.
Each Red Cross member should also be familiar with the need of the Society to be wholly Neutral under International Statutes and laws (see Geneva Conventions) and also see obligations for recognition of National Societies by the Henry Dunant Institute.
I as a member of Red Cross have seen over the years the Irish Red Cross primary function as being only a First Aid organisation no different from many of the other training organisations.
When Juanita Majury a wonderful former staff member built up a large membership of Youth Red Cross the management saw this as a risk to their power base which was uniformed units so the Youth Department was summarily dismantled and Juanita left but not without expressing her concerns to the management. To be honest they could not have cared less !
So I hope this explains my point !
Ty.0 -
Added with the provisio that its the Sindo....
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/dash-to-save-job-of-red-cross-mole-2392428.htmlMINISTER for Defence Tony Killeen has been called on to stage an eleventh-hour intervention to prevent the sacking next week of an Irish Red Cross whistleblower, the Sunday Independent has learned.
Noel Wardick, head of International Development at the IRC, was suspended after he revealed himself to be the author of an online blog which continually highlighted issues of poor governance and financial irregularities at the charity.
Officially, the disciplinary process is still ongoing but the Sunday Independent has learnt that it is to be concluded next week, and it is expected that Mr Wardick will be found guilty of "misconduct".
Mr Killeen, who has responsibility for the Irish Red Cross, has repeatedly refused to intervene in the issue, despite the embattled charity receiving almost €1m in funding from the State annually.0 -
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The disciplinary hearing was chaired by the man who Noel accused of malgovernance.
You wouldn't hear the like of it anywhere but here.
DeV.0 -
Here are a few high profile politicians asking questions of the minister, and his responses:
Priority Questions (21 Oct 2010)
http://www.kildarestreet.com/debates/?id=2010-10-21.338.0&s=Irish+Red+Cross
*Irish Red Cross* Society
Irish Red Cross Society (21 Oct 2010)
http://www.kildarestreet.com/debates/?id=2010-10-21.338.0&s=Irish+Red+Cross#g346.2
Tony Killeen: I agree with the Deputy on the role of the volunteers in
the *Irish Red Cross* Society and the wonderful work they do as well as
the impact of the *Red Cross* internationally. As previously discussed
in the Chamber, it would have been impossible to advance all this in the
absence of a chairman being in position to lead the executive as
considerable work needs to be done there. I assure the...
irish red cross : 3 Written Answers
===================================
Written Answers - Irish Red Cross: Irish Red Cross (21 Oct 2010)
http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2010-10-21.471.0&s=Irish+Red+Cross#g474.0.r
Tony Killeen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 36 together. The
*Irish Red Cross* Society is an independent statute based charitable
organisation with full power to manage its own affairs. I have no
function in the day–to–day administration of the *Irish Red Cross*
Society and as such, I do not get involved in the day-to-day running of
its affairs. In fact the Geneva Convention places an obligation...
Written Answers - Irish Red Cross: Irish Red Cross (21 Oct 2010)
http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2010-10-21.507.0&s=Irish+Red+Cross#g510.0.r
Tony Killeen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 17 and 28 together. In
accordance with Article 9 of the *Irish Red Cross* Society Order, 1939
the Chairman of the Society must be a member of the Central Council. In
nominating persons to Central Council, the Government considers that it
is highly desirable that the Society should have on its governing body,
people with a wide variety of knowledge and...
Written Answers - Irish Red Cross: Irish Red Cross (21 Oct 2010)
http://www.kildarestreet.com/wrans/?id=2010-10-21.554.0&s=Irish+Red+Cross#g557.0.r
Tony Killeen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 34 and 48 together. The
*Irish Red Cross* Society is an autonomous charitable body with full
powers to manage and administer its own affairs through its governing
body, the Central Council. I have no function in the day-to-day
administration of the *Irish Red Cross* and, as such, I do not get
involved in the day-to-day running of its affairs. The engagement of...0 -
I have to say that we do seem on occassion to be able to combine truly heroic amounts of both arrogance and stupidity.0
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I have to say that we do seem on occassion to be able to combine truly heroic amounts of both arrogance and stupidity.
When the Red Cross was exposed many years ago for retaining money I had naive hopes that the true extent of the gross incompetence and unworthiness of the management of the Red cross in Ireland to manage money destined for people in need would be addressed. I had a vision that such exposure would force those involved to leave out of sheer embarrassment. I also thought when they sacked a member of staff and changed the rules after the event so that they could sack him that this would be the catalyst for change. Then there was the strategic review and the Corporate plan, ten of thousand or should I perhaps say hundreds of thousands spent on plans for change.
Not a single thing has changed right up to the current day whilst you have the fox minding the hens you are obviously going to loose hens regularly !
This is so ridiculous that it is beyond belief !
But the good side of this whole saga is that many donors are now looking at their wallets and considering what it is they are buying when they donate to this legal case against UPC and Google. Noel Wardick is the true hero in this matter and he will be truly vindicated as he has more support than he thinks.
The management of Red Cross are so pompous that they actually think they will ride this one out if they continue with their legal action against Google and keep their head down and sack Noel.
The Red cross is supposed to act in a manner which is recognised as being Neutral in times of conflict, did anyone ever suggest to these these guys that they are not supposed to start wars..... Maybe they didn't quite get round to reading that book yet !0 -
Transparency International have criticised the IRC in their recent report about corruption in Ireland.
http://www.transparency.ie/news_events/cpi2010.htmTransparency International wrote:
Transparency has also called on the Irish Red Cross (IRC) to set a good example for other non-profit organisations by commissioning an independent review of claims made by its Head of International Department, Noel Wardick and by suspending its disciplinary action against him until the findings of an independent review are published. Mr. Wardick publicly aired his concerns about financial management and governance at the charity, and has been suspended since August of this year.
“Employers should do the right thing by those who honestly report their concerns and act on the information at hand. The Irish Red Cross is not the only organisation to have faced the kind of challenges that Mr. Wardick has claimed it faces. It would be a shame if his reports were to end in his dismissal”, said Mr. Devitt.
Hopefully this puts more pressure on both the IRC and the Government to do the right thing.0 -
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The mismanagement has been transparent for years, however this does not resolve the main issue and that is the boyos don't give a toss what anyone thinks. If they will change the rules to get rid of people they don't like and pay out the donors money to pay for settlements to staff and members, do you honestly think for one minute that they will loose a minutes sleep over what you or anyone else thinks......!
This is one tree that needs serious pruning ! I wonder would the Iraqi courts have some spare time after they are finished ?0 -
If I was to hazard a guess at the response of the Irish Red Cross to the report from Transparency International I would probably see it as containing five words "we have noted your comments".
Anything more would probably be an insult to their abilities to view life as something outside the TARDIS.0 -
Has anyone been contacted by a publisher from the UK about doing a book on the Red Cross in Ireland, just heard that that this is on the cards ? Well, considering what has been mentioned in the Blog and on Boards you could almost make a drama out of this one !0
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Did anyone see today's (27th October) Irish Independent editorial on the Irish Red Cross? Fair play to the Indo as they call for 1. Whistle blower protection 2. Protection for Noel Wardick who has been suspended and probably soon to be fired for his revealations about governance and financial irregularities and 3. An independent investigation into the Irish Red Cross and the claims made by Noel Wardick including the Tipperary bank account at the center of the mess. I see Wardick is quick off the mark as the full editorial is up on his blog at
http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com0 -
I think when they closed all the head shops they left the biggest one open, these guys must be completely off their heads or out of their heads....what ever there taking the Governement and all about them wants no one to know what it is hidden behind the big red door in Merrion Square. What is it exactly they are afraid of?
This is one story that should be on Jerry Springer. Irish Government spends a million on organisation that few people know who is on the committee that controls it, The Governement hands the money over but can't ask them what they are doing with it. They at regular intervals get caught doing some fancy laundry with the books and then go to ground if anyone asks questions... Then there is all the property they own, nobody knows except them behind the big red door where all that is and even the auditors say they don't know either. Then they say nothing is wrong and they say they are going to get a big noise accountants to look at the books, but that is only for show.
So with all this stuff that nobody knows anything about, does anyone one think that something isn't quite right or is it me....? oh yes this dude Wardick he goes and tells the truth ( is that not one of the commandments) and for telling the truth they get all upset.
So if you tell the truth your wrong. If you see someone else doing wrong your not to tell anyone. If you do tell anyone you loose your job and then for telling the truth as Wardick did they are prepared to tell lies so that they don't have to tell the truth...0 -
Join Date:Posts: 29920
Which is what leads to corruption in this country already. Everyone is too scared to stand up and say "this is wrong".
DeV.0 -
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It is time that the people of this Country stopped being servants and demand the rights that they are entitled to, what in the current climate have we to loose?
The Red Cross is just a symbol of how structure of an organisation can go wrong when you give people a position of responsibility and they immediately go into lemming mode and change this into a position of power.
The Management of the Red Cross actually believe that they are correct!
What is it they hope to achieve by their actions? Why the secrecy ? Why is is that Central Council members only know a part of the story?
But if you don't ask you will never hope to understand.
Telling the truth should not be met with animosity or aggression. The Red Cross should be the last organisation seeking to threaten its members with legal action. If one looks back historically over the last 30 years at the legal actions, most are due to the Red Cross initiating the action or acting in a manner which required some one to feel that there was only recourse to the law to have themselves vindicated.
Sad but true !0
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