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Support Whisteblowers!
Non-Retaliation Policy Urged for State and Federal Whistleblowers Who Come Forward in the Aftermath of Katrina
Washington, D.C.September 6, 2005. In a statement issued today, the National Whistleblower Center strongly urged President Bush to issue a public statement prohibiting retaliation against any employee who provides testimony or raise allegations of official misconduct related to the devastating impact of Hurricane Katrina. A variety of laws protect such employees, including the Lloyd-LaFollette Act (prohibits retaliation against employees who provide information to Congress), the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (provides for whistleblower protection for all Homeland Security employees, including employees of FEMA) and the False Claims Act (provides protection to employees of federal contractors). State, local and private sector employees are protected under Louisiana state whistleblower protection laws. The following statement was released by Stephen M. Kohn, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Whistleblower Center, regarding the protection of the potential whistleblowers that will come forward in Katrina's aftermath: We call upon the Bush Administration to issue a public statement promising to protect any employee who steps forward with allegations of misconduct related to the federal or state response to Katrina. Although a number of laws protect employees who may raise allegations concerning the failure to plan for or respond to a catastrophic events arising from Katrina, the National Whistleblower Center fears that the Bush Administration's past retaliation of whistleblowers will have a chilling effect on a majority of the people willing to come forward. The American people need to learn the truth about what went wrong and to make sure that the appropriate corrective action is taken. We urge any employee who intends on making a disclosure on potential government misconduct to obtain counsel to prevent potential retaliation. Although a number of laws protect whistleblowers, it is the experience of the NWC that employees who blow the whistle to Congress are often given more protection than those that disclose such information to other sources. The National Whistleblower Center also coordinates a network of attorneys nation-wide who are prepared to take referrals from whistleblowers, including employees who are considering whether to step forward with allegations related to the official response to Hurricane Katrina.
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A Few More Good Sites/Blogs
Free Press:
Hurricane Katrina
threads on Nightshade: Anything about NO, Katrina, etc on Nightshade: Post-Katrina response: Actions, attitudes, policies "A looter is not someone who takes food or water and what people need." - New Orleans police officer who "wouldn't give his name because he'd be fired, he said."
CNN: Sunday,
September 11, 2005
U.S. won't ban media from New Orleans searches
CNN filed suit for right to cover search for
bodies of Katrina victims
Rather than
fight a lawsuit by CNN, the federal government abandoned its
effort Saturday to prevent the media from reporting on the
recovery of the dead in New Orleans . . .
"It is not the place of government to replace its own
internal judgment for that of a free and independent media."
- CNN's brief
Does this Bluff-calliing mean that media will start to act independent? One suit is like that one swallow. The Surrealism in Journalism Awards go to The International Herald Tribune (owned by the New York Times) for "Luxury flat in London? Or an Italian villa? Why not both" - banner ad inThe International Herald Tribune for its Properties section, above the article New Orleans slipping toward anarchy and The New York Times for
Refugees try
to adjust in Baton Rouge
NATIONAL DESK
| September
2, 2005, Friday
BATON ROUGE, La.
— Jean Bowling found the cheapest bottle
of red wine in the Whole Foods grocery store here, hoping it would
offer a momentary reprieve from the chaos that has become her life.
Back in New Orleans,
she might be sharing the wine with a friend in her trendy Uptown
neighborhood. But here she is staying in her mother’s home, her
children in tow. So instead of drinking the bottle, she is
considering just using it to cook with.
More
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