After legal consultation my attorney sent a letter, dated 11 April 2019 to the Zondo commission advising them that if I was to be mentioned within the commission of inquiry, I had the right to make a submission and cross examine its witnesses who mentioned me.
Once more General Booysen was allowed to commit perjury and paint me in a negative way and I was not invited to cross examine him or testify.
In 17 July 2019 I discovered by reading about it in the media that the case against the Cato Manor unit had been dropped. I communicated with the National prosecutor authority ( NPA ) prosecutor in the case, Sello Maema, strongly protesting for not informing me in advance and having found out by the media. Sello sent me an email apologising for the way I had been handled by the NPA, (the fact that I had to find out from the media). This was the second time the NPA offcialy apologized to me about their misconduct, failures and incompetence. He furthermore suggested that I write directly to the head of the NPA. I did so, and they forwarded my correspondence to the NPA director of the KwaZulu-Natal. Again, I got a joke of a reply. My own sources informed me that the director of the KwaZulu-Natal NPA was compromised. Here is their reply and mine.
In 2019 Anton Harber, a professor of journalism, wrote a book, regarding whistleblowers and within it, he cast doubt about my character without ever having engaged with me, or given me the right to reply. I thought it was strange that he did not himself practice what he was preaching in his book. In 2021 I contacted Anton Harber after he had attended my press ombudsman hearing complaint that I won in South Africa.Prior to that he had engaged via email with a social worker and friend of mine, John Clarke. In this email correspondence, he referred to me as a “devious character”. I demanded an explanation and an apology from Anton and asked him to provide me any evidence that he had, in order to support his negative opinion of me. He did not provide any and asked me to provide him with evidence proving the opposite!I found this laughable and an insult to my intelligence.
In the meantime I was approached by NGOs globally and human rights movements that were in need of guidance and support. One of them was the Transparency International Greece, in order to assist in the development of the EAT project, which stands for Expanding Anonymous Tipping.This project forms part of the new EU Directive of the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2019 for reporting wrongdoing and corruption anonymously and safely. Το my honor I was the only whistleblower to be included on this panel of experts.
Furthermore, I was used as the key face of the whistleblower concept on a national level in Greece and assisted as a consultant on an two year project to introduce the new EU Directive to Greece.
My collaboration with Transparency International in Greece, was a learning process for me as well. I was given the opportunity to work with a team of experts passionate about human rights and whistleblowing.
References:
whistleblower public face for the awareness campaign in Greece.
We further developed a recommendation on the Directive for Whistleblower Protection Act and a study on the transposition to the Greek national Law. The project lasted two years and it was finalised at the end of 2021.
Reference:
ARE EU GOVERNMENTS TAKING WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION SERIOUSLY?
My work was pro bono by choice.
Currently I am officially listed on the team of Blueprint for free speech as an honorary research fellow. I am also in the process of registering a Greek chapter of Blueprint. I will be responsible for the regions of Eastern Europe and Africa, focusing on advocacy for freedom of expression, human rights, policy making and whistleblowing.