Tolerance + 2 rule in European missions?
(B2) The European sphere is more than silent on the cases of sexual harassment practiced within it. If in France, the question is quite taboo, at European level, it is omerta. At this level, we could even speak of a tolerance that turns out to be far from being the "zero" tolerance officially displayed.
Disciplinary discharge
According to our information, Romeo (not his real name) was employed in a European security and defense mission (CSDP) in the Middle East. Normally, he must offer all moral guarantees of good conduct. That didn't seem to be quite the case. The man was a womanizer. Something that so far should not cause any problems, except when it comes to a somewhat frenzied race. After a few weeks of "intense" undertakings on his colleagues, he received a reprimand with a detailed report, to the buttocks, which led to the non-renewal of his contract... A sort of "disciplinary evacuation", the ultimate sanction of the European institution (and often the only one) in the event of harassment (1).
... and rehire some time later
This measure, which should have been exemplary, did not last very long! After a few months of "purgatory", our Romeo has found a new position. He was...rehired to the Internal Security Forces Support Mission (EUAM Ukraine), based in Kyiv, to a position that is not negligible. Apparently the panel responsible for the selection did not have knowledge of his file — which is surprising — or else it was deemed insufficient to justify this rehiring — which would be just as surprising —. Or else it was his (Italian) nationality that justified this inexplicable leniency...
An inexplicable leniency
The question remains. It might be time for the European institutions to pay some attention to these questions of harassment, before a European-style Denis Beaupin-type case breaks out. Admittedly, the missions and operations of the CSDP are missions "in geographical celibacy". But does this justify a certain leniency of the institution?
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)
(1) The European Commission has often practiced an omerta on the facts of professional harassment or sexual harassment, sometimes leading to the sanction... of the victim rather than the harasser, subject of a promotion.
Read also on B2 Pro: Discipline within CSDP missions. A lack of action framework?
