ACFID Code of Conduct
Committee
Australian Council for
International Development
12 Napier Close, Deakin
ACT 2600
30th April
2014
Dear Dr Sue-Anne Wallace
Greg Brown
John Gilmore
Bandula Gonsalkorale
Harwood Lockton
Dr Petrus Usmanij
Fadlullah Wilmot
Dr Simon Smith
Michelle Pearce
Julie Mundy
I have had Chanti and Chhork’s
letter to your committee translated. It reads:
COMPLAINT
TO AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
By
Both
Chhork and Yem Chanthy
Ponley
village
Ba Paong
commune
Peam Ror
district
Prey
Veng province
Cambodia
22nd
April 2014
We, Both
Chhork and Yem Chanti, are the father
and mother of two girls – Phoun Rosa and Phoun Thida.
Our
daughters have been detained in Phnom Penh by Citipointe Church’s ‘SHE Rescue
Home’ since 31st July 2008.
We have
not given our permission to Citipointe church to detain our daughters.
For five
years we have been asking Pastor Leigh Ramsey at Citipointe church to return
our daughters. Every time she says yes soon but keeps our daughters locked up.
For five
years we have been asking Citipointe to give us copies of the MOUs the church
says it has. Citipointe tells us these MOUs say that the church can take our
daughters and keep them. We do not believe the church.
We have
asked the Cambodian Ministry of Social Affairs to give us copies of the MOUs so
that we can learn what is true and what things we must do to have Rosa and
Chita returned to our family.
The
Ministry of Social Affairs refuses to give us copies of the MOUs.
With
great respect we want the Australian Council of International Affairs to tell
Citipointe church to give us copies of the MOUs.
We have
asked Mr James Ricketson to help us by making a complaint to the Australian
Council of International Development.
Signed Signed
Both Chhork Yem
Chanthy
As I made clear in my letter of 4th
April, I will not be taking part in any so called investigation conducted by
your committee since, in the absence of the MOUs and other legal documents
pertaining to Rosa and Chita’s removal from the family home, no proper
investigation can take place.
Chanti and Chhork’s village is
just 90 minutes from Phnom Penh and, if you call them on their mobile phone
(+85581551923), you can either arrange to meet with them in Phnom Penh or in
their village. The latter would be preferable as this would give you an
opportunity to see first hand where and how they live. A visit to the family
home and village would make you realize how outrageous it is, on every level,
that Citipointe retains custody of the girls contrary to their parent’s express
wishes.
I doubt very much that any member
of your committee will visit their village, however, or even speak with Chanti
or Chhork. Your role is not to adjudicate on the basis of facts (MOUs etc.) but
to provide Citipointe and other similarly fraudulent NGOs with a patina of
respectability; to create the illusion that all is well in the aid industry, as
practiced by Australian NGOs.
In the meantime I am exploring
legal avenues through the Queensland Supreme Court to force Citipointe and the
Global Development Group to produce the MOUs that Dr Sam Mostyn, Marc Purcell
and your committee refuses to ask for.
best
wishes
James
Ricketson
No comments:
Post a Comment