Haiti withdraws Oxfam GB's right to operate after misconduct scandal

Haiti's Minister of Planning and External Cooperation Aviol Fleurant delivers copies of the statement about the resolution on the Oxfam scandal to the journalists after a news conference in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, June 13, 2018. REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares

PORT-AU-PRINCE (Reuters) - Haiti's government on Wednesday said it was withdrawing Oxfam Great Britain's right to operate in the Caribbean country after allegations of sexual misconduct by some of the charity's staff.

In a statement, three ministries, including the Planning and External Cooperation Ministry, said they were withdrawing Oxfam Great Britain's status as a non-governmental organization "for violation of Haitian law and serious violation of the principle of the dignity of the human beings."

The British aid organization has been rocked by allegations that staff, including a former Haiti country director, used prostitutes during a relief mission after a devastating earthquake hit the island nation in 2010.

In February, Haiti temporarily revoked Oxfam Great Britain's right to operate in the country.

A spokeswoman for Oxfam in Haiti said the organization would be releasing a statement on Wednesday about the withdrawal of Oxfam Great Britain's right to operate in Haiti.

(Reporting by Andres Martinez Casares; Writing by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Rosalba O'Brien)