Jóhannes Stefánsson (1973)[1] is the former Director of Operations in Namibia for Icelandic fishing company Samherji[2] and a whistleblower known as the source of the Fishrot Files (Icelandic: Samherjaskjölin), which included thousands of the company's documents, emails and other files.[3][4][5] The files and Jóhannes' testimony allegedly show that the company paid hundreds of millions to senior officials in Namibia to get the country's fishing quota[6][7] and have led to high profile resignations[8][9][10] and arrests[11][12] in at least 27 countries.[13]

Career

Jóhannes worked as a fisherman for ten years before taking more managerial positions at a fish factory. He worked his way to foreman, and then started traveling the world looking for opportunities for Samherji in 2007.[1][13] In 2011 he came to Namibia[14] where foreign companies weren't allowed to bid on fishing quotes, but local bidders could resell their rights. Samherji sent him to Walvis Bay in Namibia to sign deals and manage the business. Jóhannes says he helped Samherji inflate fees, evade taxes, and engage in transfer pricing violations.[1][13]

From 2013 to July 2016, Jóhannes was the managing director for Arcticnam Fishing, co-owned by Samherji, and the Director of Operations in Namibia for Samherji.[2][13][14] Jóhannes says that in 2016, his feelings of guilt grew and he decided to quit Samherji while on a trip to Cape Town. With the help of an IT specialist, he downloaded 38,000 emails from his work account, along with memos, photos and videos from a shared Dropbox account onto five hard drives over two days.[13][14]

Jóhannes's employment with Samherji formally ended in December 2016.[7]

Whistleblowing

By July 2016, Jóhannes decided to go public. Jóhannes says he started receiving threats, that false rumors were spread about him and that his food was poisoned. Jóhannes stayed in South Africa, protected by bodyguards until 10 January 2017.[7][13][14]

In August 2018, Jóhannes started working with the investigation team in Namibia and special units of the Namibian government.[15] The PPLAAF took the threats to his safety seriously enough to help him.[14] After returning to Iceland, he contacted WikiLeaks and began working on the Fishrot Files with Kristinn Hrafnsson.[7][13] The two decided to partner with RUV, Stundin and Al Jazeera's Investigative Unit.[7]

On 12 November 2019, WikiLeaks began publishing the Fishrot Files. On the same day, Jóhannes said on RÚV's investigative program that Samherji's CEO authorized the bribes.[16] Jóhannes admits he committed crimes, but believes he acted on behalf of the company,[1][7][17] saying "I violated the law on behalf of Samherji while I was there. I was the man to get the quotas and the connections, on my superiors’ orders."[5]

After Fishrot

On 1 March 2021, a crowd-funding campaign was announced to raise funds for Jóhannes, who said he believes he was poisoned. The campaign was organised by Whistleblowing International, ANA LOGO, Whistleblower Network News and the National Whistleblower Center.[18]

In October 2021, he won the WIN WIN Gothenburg Sustainability Award.[19][20][21][22]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "The Icelandic fisherman who fought the sharks - and won". The Mail & Guardian. 2020-01-30. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  2. 1 2 "Jóhannes Stefánsson". National Whistleblower Center. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  3. ↑ Helgi Seljan; Aðalsteinn Kjartansson; Stefán Aðalsteinn Drengsson. "Hver er uppljóstrarinn?". Kveikur (in Icelandic). RÚV. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  4. ↑ Nils Torsvik (4 December 2019). "Samherji-varsleren Johannes Stefansson er stadig på vakt mot «haiene» i Namibia". Fiskeribladet (in Norwegian). Retrieved 3 November 2022.Closed access icon
  5. 1 2 "What Samherji wanted hidden". Kveikur. RÚV. 2019-11-12. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  6. ↑ "Fishrot Six fight warrants in Supreme Court". The Namibian. January 13, 2020. p. 1.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kleinfeld, James (2019-12-01). "Anatomy of a Bribe: A deep dive into an underworld of corruption". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
  8. ↑ Steindór Grétar Jónsson (13 November 2019). "Namibísku ráðherrarnir segja af sér". Stundin (in Icelandic). Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  9. ↑ Iileka, Sakeus (14 November 2019). "Disgraced ministers resign". The Namibian. p. 1.
  10. ↑ "Bribery allegations over fishing rights rock Iceland and Namibia". the Guardian. 2019-11-15. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  11. ↑ "Officials in Namibia corruption scheme to remain in custody". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  12. ↑ Amakali, Maria (2020-09-07). "Angola: Fishrot Probe - Angola Refuses Cooperation... Norway and Iceland Willing to Assist". allAfrica.com. Retrieved 2020-09-14.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Turner, Jane (2021-03-01). "Jóhannes Stefánsson". Whistleblower Network News. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 Shinovene, Shinovene (2019-11-19). "Whistle-blower Stefánsson". Investigation Unit. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  15. ↑ "Johannes Stefansson". PPLAAF. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  16. ↑ Ingi Freyr Vilhjálmsson (12 November 2019). "An Icelandic fishing company bribed officials in Namibia and used Norway's largest bank to transfer 70 million dollars to a tax haven". Stundin (in Icelandic). Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  17. ↑ Marketing, Intouch Interactive (2020-07-24). "'I will finish what I started' - Justice". Namibian Sun. Retrieved 2020-08-16.
  18. ↑ "Whistleblower Advocates Launch GoFundMe Campaign for Fishrot Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson". Whistleblower Network News. 2021-03-01. Retrieved 2021-04-20.
  19. ↑ "2021 winner of WIN WIN Award". WIN WIN Award. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  20. ↑ "Illegal Fishing Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson Receives Major International Award". National Whistleblower Center. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  21. ↑ Worth, Mark (2021-04-21). "Fishrot Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson Receives Prestigious Gothenburg Award". Whistleblower Network News. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
  22. ↑ Arnar Þór Ingólfsson (21 April 2021). "Jóhannes Stefánsson í hóp með Kofi Annan og Al Gore". Kjarninn (in Icelandic). Retrieved 31 October 2022.
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