The president of the International Peace Institute (IPI) has resigned after it was revealed he had links to convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Key points:
- The IPI board said Epstein's crimes were "hideous"
- It will "re-donate" every dollar received from the disgraced financier
- IPI vice-president Dr Adam Lupel has been appointed as acting president and CEO
Norwegian media reported earlier this month that IPI president Terje Rød-Larsen secured a personal loan from Epstein in 2013.
A report last year noted the organisation received a total of $US650,000 ($922,000) in donations from Epstein's foundations between 2011 and 2019.
The international think tank is chaired by former prime minister Kevin Rudd, who joined the board in 2014.
A statement from the board said the disgraced financier's crimes were "hideous" and Mr Rød-Larsen had apologised for his poor judgement.
"The notion that IPI would be in any way engaged with such an odious character is repugnant to the institution's core values," the statement read.
The IPI board convened an extraordinary meeting to accept Mr Rød-Larsen's resignation.
Current vice-president Dr Adam Lupel has been appointed acting president and CEO.
The board said the group's finances would be audited immediately to make sure all Epstein foundation donations were identified.
"In November 2019, at the initiative of the Chair and with support of the Board, IPI announced it would donate a sum equivalent to any donations received from Epstein's foundations to programs that support victims of human trafficking and sexual assault," the statement also read.
"Epstein's foundations collectively donated more than $30 million to dozens of charitable and teaching institutions prior to his death.
"Although many institutions have decided to keep some or all of these donations, the IPI Board takes the strict view that every dollar should be re-donated."
The statement went on to say the Institute's financial officers had confirmed there were no payments ever made to Epstein, "despite some press speculation to the contrary".
Mr Rudd addressed the reports in a statement on Wednesday, saying he acted swiftly on two separate occasions to forward funds received from Epstein to charity when he learned of them in November 2019.
He said it was important to remember that Epstein's foundations were donating millions of dollars to "dozens and dozens of charitable organisations" and he had never "to his knowledge" met him.
The 50-year-old IPI describes itself as an "independent, international not-for-profit think tank dedicated to managing risk and building resilience to promote peace, security, and sustainable development".
Mr Rød-Larsen had a lengthy career working in the Middle East.
In 1993 he was appointed ambassador and special adviser for the Middle East peace process to the Norwegian Foreign Minister.
Three years later he became Norway's deputy prime minister and minister for planning and cooperation, and from 1999 to 2004 he was United Nations special coordinator for the Middle East peace process and the UN secretary-general's personal representative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority.
In 1999 he was appointed the UN secretary-general's special envoy to Lebanon.
In that role he negotiated with Syria, Lebanon and Israel to broker a deal on the withdrawal of Israeli and Syrian troops.
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2020-10-29 21:13:00Z
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