May 13, 2011 – Peace Corps Worldwide

Aaron Williams Takes One for the Peace Corps

May 13 2011

Aaron Williams took one on the chin for the Peace Corps on Wednesday, May 11, 2011. He took one for his Administration, all those CDs and APCDs around the world; he took one for all the past Peace Corps Directors when he appeared as the sole Peace Corps voice at the House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing to examine what its chairwoman, Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtien, Republican of Florida, called “serious crimes” committed against Peace Corps Volunteers, including murder. In announcing the Hearing, her office cited reports of “gross mismanagement of sexual assault complaints.” She is right. All of us going back fifty years could say much the same. We all have stories to tell from being there. Trying to ‘run’ the Peace Corps from Washington is like trying to organize a gaggle of geese. It can’t be done. Aaron, and the Directors before him, has had to delegate authority to others, many others, . . .

From Chairwoman Ros-Lehtinen, Opening Statement at Hearing on Peace Corps Volunteer Safety

May 13 2011

“Despite critical reports by its own Inspector General, the General Accountability Office, and prior Congressional hearings, Peace Corps’ safety and security failures have been a recurrent problem with tragic consequences for thousands of volunteers. Some who seek to ignore those problems have asserted that volunteer service, itself, is inherently risky as an excuse for lax and ineffective safety and security measures. That attitude is unacceptable.” Read the complete statement at: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/press_display.asp?id=1819 Please note: The links for the actual testimony are no longer active. The testimony should be available in hard copy at those public libraries that are federal depositories. The hearings were held on May 11, 2011 before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. A librarian should be able to help you access the hard copies, or tell you how to find them. The links are now here just for reference. The hearings can be viewed at the link provided . . .

Archive - May 13, 2011