Described as by ex-FBI operative, Jane Turner, as a hero and a warrior, Fishrot scandal whistleblower and star-witness, Johannes Stefansson has brought Namibia’s biggest corruption scandal story to the Americans at the country’s National Whistleblowing Week which commenced Friday and will end this Saturday.
“This man has withstood death threats, attempts on his life, he is a whistleblower to be honored,” Turner said of Stefansson on Thursday in a conversation on how whistleblowers can be assisted throughout the world.
Jane Turner was a highly decorated 25-year veteran of the FBI who won awards for successfully investigating major crimes on the Forth Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota.
She was described by federal prosecutors as the leading FBI agent solving child crimes in the entire United States.
After documenting a seriously botched child sex crime case committed by agents of the FBI, she was removed from her position.
In the meantime, Stefansson took the occasion to call for unity in the Whistleblowing community in order to fight corruption “and see this world change (for the) better”.
The former Samherji blue-eyed man got in touch with this publication ahead of the day in the USA.
“It is very important because we need to bring more awareness about whistleblowers and whistleblowing and all related matters because whistleblowers have used one of their strongest tools to fight and expose corruption. This is actually the fourth panel discussion I will participate in in four months. The ones I have participated in have looked at how we can do better and how whistleblowers can protected better. I think their wellness is a very important factor in all these matters,” he said.
Stefansson shot to firm after an intrepid Al Jazeera documentary took the world into the inner workings of a web of corruption which permeated Namibia’s fisheries sector.
Since then, he has been invited to preside over panel conversations right across the world on corruption.
“I don’t know if I can call myself a famous person but I am just happy about the opportunity when people ask me to share my understanding and knowledge and experience because, keep in mind, I am learning everyday as well from all the panelists and the people I have been talking with in conferences because there are many great people in this world assisting whistleblowers and fighting corruption as well as NGOs,” he said.
In the meantime, the past week has seen Tamson Hatuikulipi gunning for bail during which time he accused Stefansson of being a drug addict who had messed up his work with his employer, the Icelandic Samherji company.
“I do not think there is anything that surprises. From the face of the accused these tactics are playing out and have been playing out for some time. This is no surprise. This is a big fight for justice for Namibian people and those accused in the Fish-rot scandal will try to do anything to get free from this and to get out from prison,” he said.
At the same time, South Africa’s justice ministry has said that Namibia has formally reached out for the extradition of Fishrot accused lawyer, Maren de Klerk.
De Klerk is now on the run with a warrant of arrest issued against him by Interpol.
“I think every step that prosecutors and investigators are making are good and people have been waiting for this but at least there is some information coming to the surface and hopefully we will see something about the(accused) people in Iceland even though Icelandic authorities say there is no extradition agreement with Namibia but Iceland is party to international agreements. So, hopefully we will also see steps like these against them also in Iceland,” he said.
Stefansson has said that Fishrot case continues to make headlines and is one of the most talked about cases in Iceland.
“Yes, this is a big case in Iceland, the Icelandic Samherji fishing company is a very powerful company and there is always talk on social media, in the news, now and then. It is big but I find the journalists in Namibia much more on top of things than in Iceland on Fish-rot,” he said.
