The former head of Caritas International, who was dismissed last November, has charged that his ouster was part of a “brutal power grab” by the Vatican, reflecting a “colonialist” attitude toward development programs.
Aloysius John was removed—along with other leaders of the international consortium of Catholic relief agencies—amid reports of arbitrary management practices that had allegedly damaged morale among employees. But John says that the decision to change Caritas leadership was “made in haste, with incredible violence and very poor public communication.” He insists that an independent review would have found no serious management problems.
In a letter obtained by Associated Press, protesting his removal, John said that unhappy Caritas officials had resisted his leadership because he represented a “Southern” alternative to their “Northern” ideas about international charity work. (John is a French citizen but his family is from India.)