Almost 10 weeks after announcing plans to investigate leaks of internal documents to Fox News, the World Bank has hired a Washington, D.C., law firm to conduct the probe, according to an announcement made internally April 9.
The firm of Williams & Connolly has been selected to examine not only the first leak, of board minutes, but also a subsequent leak of a sensitive e-mail. The message to a top Bank staffer concerned Chinese government disagreement with a Bank plan for tightening sanctions as part of its new anti-corruption strategy.
The leaked e-mail was the basis for a March 26 story on Fox News by Richard Behar. “MOF [China’s Ministry of Finance ] is very concerned,” warns the March 12 e-mail, published by Fox and written by the Bank’s China manager, Hsiao-Yun Elaine Sun. The e-mail was dispatched to 24 staffers in Washington and Asia, according to the Fox, and suggests that China might halt future borrowings.
Previously Fox obtained and published the minutes of a Jan. 8 board committee meeting in a Jan. 31 story. World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz on Feb. 1 announced his intention to conduct an investigation. Weeks later, Bank officials said they would be seeking outside counsel to handle the investigation.
By Toby McIntosh
Filed under: IFTI Watch