Great Britain’s humanitarian operations in Haiti, Oxfam GB, have been suspended by the Haitian government. The temporary two-month suspension will coincide with Haiti’s investigation of Oxfam GB’s handling of allegations of staff members paying for sex workers during Oxfam’s humanitarian work following the disastrous 2010 earthquake in Haiti. According to Oxfam, they have met with the Haitian government following the suspension and have reiterated their apology to the Haitian people. A decision on the right of the charity to operate in Haiti will be made by the government in approximately two months. Oxfam has declared that it will improve its policies and practices regarding global safeguarding, and staff attached to their other branches will continue to work in Haiti. They have also indicated their intention to provide and independent commission to investigate the events. Despite Oxfam denying responsibility for the coverup in the 2011 prostitution scandal, the Charity Commission, a charity watchdog, has raised concerns about Oxfam’s handing of it. They are set to begin their own investigation as well.

In a direct tweet to UK media on Thursday, Bocchit Edmond, chief of mission at the Haitian embassy in London, stated that “The Haitian government has decided to suspend temporarily the authorization of Oxfam GB to operate in Haiti.” A statement by Oxfam read that “Oxfam has apologized to the Haitian government and people for abuses by former staff that occurred in 2011. Oxfam is committed to putting in place a number of wide-sweeping initiatives to improve its global safeguarding policies and practices, including the establishment of an independent commission and putting more staff and resources into its safeguarding teams.” Mark Goldring, Oxfam GB chief executive, during questioning by the UK international development committee, apologized to Members of Parliament for the employees who used sex workers in Haiti, while acknowledging the harm of the charity’s actions on the aid community and the Haitian people. In his apology to the committee for his earlier comments that were perceived as downplaying the severity of the scandal, he stated that “I make no excuses, I make an apology for comparing what I was going through with the bigger picture.” He added that “My first concern is the women of Haiti and anybody else who has been wronged as a result of Oxfam’s programme. I shouldn’t have put my own sleep, or lack of it, in the public domain.”

The various investigations that are about to be conducted in the handling of the 2011 Oxfam scandal in Haiti, along with the increased governmental scrutiny that Oxfam GB faces in Great Britain, are important steps in the reform of the practices of charitable foundations. The consistent mishandling of the exploitation of sex trade workers by staff members of Oxfam, during a time when the Haitian population was in a heightened state of vulnerability, represents conduct that is in stark opposition of the lofty goals and initiatives that the charitable organization prides themselves on. The slow pace with which these revelations are becoming apparent in the media sphere and the wider population is a troubling development. Furthermore, the valuable lessons of rebuilding the fractured relationship among aid organizations and vulnerable communities are emerging at a temporal period that is far too removed from the damage itself.

Oxfam’s increasing level of scrutiny and criticism from different parties in relation to their handling of the 2011 scandal has had a major impact on the charity, as they have already lost 7,000 regular donors. A recent Guardian/ICM poll indicates that 35% of those surveyed were now less likely to donate to humanitarian charities, with 52% of those who had already donated indicating that they would now be less likely to donate to these charities. The erosion of trust that different parties (ranging from civilian donors to governmental bodies to target populations) have in the conduct of charitable organizations can threaten the effectiveness and scope of their work, which continues to be crucial in the fight against global poverty and other aspects that perpetuate global insecurity and suffering.