Friday, July 31, 2009


Will Iraqi LGBT Ever Be Accountable?


For five years, the Iraqi LGBT advocacy organization operating from London under the direction of Ali Hili, has performed much good work in bringing attention to the plight of gays in Baghdad and the refugees escaping Iraq. The organization has also been soliciting and raising funds for numerous projects, and has yet to issue any sort of acceptable fiscal accounting.

Almost a month ago, after I prodded Ali and his supporters in the UK, Peter Tatchell and Paul Canning, accountant Josh Botham, and Doug Ireland in USA, to produce financial report, a release was issued and this promise was made:
Botham said that as part of the application [UK charity status] the group would publish full accounts on its website shortly.
In a July 14 email, Peter offered his views on this money matter:
Of course there should be proper accountability by Ali and everyone at Iraqi LGBT. I have been pressing for this longer than anyone else - for years, not months.

I regret that this openness has been so slow in coming and is still only partial and incomplete. I will keep pressing for full transparency and accountability.
It didn't sit well with me that Peter, who closely works with and advises Ali, had been trying for years for an accounting, and hadn't received one.

On July 15, Doug shared this email with a listserv I created:
Ali assured me this afternoon that the full financial report will be made public around the end of next week at the latest (sooner if his volunteer accountant is available for a final review after Ali sees it this week), and even though the Internet connection in the new little flat he just moved into this past weekend (a move that was a major disruption to Iraqi LGBT's work) won't be established until July 25 (he's having to pop into Internet cafes when he can until then). I have no reason to believe we won't see this report soon.
The report Doug was promised, didn't materialize. At the same time, Ali was really pissed with me, as reflected in a few emails he shared sent to me and the listserv:
LISTEN PHONY MONKEY , THE GROUP STARTED IN SEPTEMBER 2005 SO IT IS NOT 45 YEARS THAT THAT RIGHT ASS HOLE ...

WELL AT LEAST I AM A MAN , I SUPPORT MYSELF , IM HEALTHY HAPPY AND BUTCH MAN, WAHT ARE YOU A VERY SAD HIV+ ON POT ALL DAY.

EAT YOUR HEART AND HOPE YOU BURN IN HELL FOR YOUR SINS
Naturally, I disagree with his assessment, worse things have been said about me and my thick skin is not troubled by Ali's nastiness. He can throw all the scorn he wants toward me, and none of it will detract from this central point: Iraqi LGBT and its supporters still have not allowed their long-promised report to see the light of day.

So my question to Ali, Josh the accountant, Peter, Paul and Doug is this: Will this organization ever get around to keeping its word on the report?

2 comments:

Simon Forbes said...

Michael

This disgusting abuse of you is not achieving anything for the person concerned.

I still think the rumours of fraud disseminated by a certain "expert" quarter are malicious and fuelled by a vendetta against those associated with him.

However, the reaction you are getting does nothing to dispel such rumours. A hole is being dug deeper.

I sincerely hope some kind of credible financial report is forthcoming in the near future. If it does not appear then donations will dry up and the project will collapse.

The people who will suffer because of that will be people in the Middle East (and yes there are real people the other end). Nobody in Britain will suffer anything apart from wounded ego.

Simon

Unknown said...

simon,

thanks for your comments. i just can't understand why ali and his various supporters have allowed so much time to pass, and have not addressed the accountability questions.

at this point, after months of requesting some accountability and not getting it from ali, i sincerely hope josh botham, the accountant for IRAQI LGBT, takes whatever papers and receipts ali has, and creates a report.

gay in iraq and the refugees who escape the country deserve a proper and honest group that works on their behalf.

michael