Now Oxfam and Save the Children have been shown to have covered up inappropriate sexual behaviour by their employees, and no doubt many other charities will be similarly exposed in the days the come. Those who have excoriated others for their “sins,” whilst presuming their own moral superiority, have been shown to have been just as guilty themselves.  

Recent months have seen a number of scandals, whether sexual or financial, engulfing left-leaning institutions and organisations (by which I primarily mean socially liberal and progressive rather than economically to the left). Hollywood has been left reeling by the revelations of sexual harassment that started with the expose of Harvey Weinstein. The BBC has been caught up in controversy over the disparity between the pay of male and female stars, culminating in the dramatic resignation of Carrie Gracie as China correspondent, not to mention the ongoing ramifications of the Jimmy Saville child-abuse scandal. The Labour party has been beset with allegations of antisemitism and misogyny. Now Oxfam and Save the Children have been shown to have covered up inappropriate sexual behaviour by their employees, and no doubt many other charities will be similarly exposed in the days the come. Those who have excoriated others for their “sins,” whilst presuming their own moral superiority, have been shown to have been just as guilty themselves.

In the past we have tended to assume that the contemporary equivalents of the Pharisees in the Bible, noted for their hypocrisy and judgement of others, were conservatives and the religious right. It goes without saying that the sexual abuse scandals that have been perpetrated by various churches have been appalling, but they were initially spun by the media as characteristic of religion, and left-leaning organisations and institutions claimed the moral high ground to advance their progressive agendas.

However, we now discover that Oxfam covered up the fact that its staff in Haiti were making use of prostitutes, some of whom are alleged to be underage. Perhaps just as damming is the revelation that staff working for Oxfam and other relief agencies were living in 5* accommodation whilst purportedly helping those whose lives had been devastated by natural disasters. The behaviour of the former chief executive of Save the Children, who sent inappropriate text messages to female staff, was also covered up, and he has moved on to a high-paid role with UNIECF.

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