Fifa dismisses confidentiality complaints by two whistleblowers

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/dec/16/fifa-dismisses-whistleblowers-complaints

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Fifa has dismissed complaints by two whistleblowers who were interviewed during the investigation into the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids.

Its disciplinary panel chairman, Claudio Sulser, ruled that the whistleblowers’ breach of confidentiality claim had no substance.

The Fifa statement did not identify Phaedra Almajid, a former Qatar bid staffer, and Bonita Mersiades, who worked for the Australia campaign. Both worked in communications for their countries’ 2022 bids and left before the December 2010 vote.

Sulser ruled that both women “had gone public with their own media activities long before” last month’s publication of the summary of the investigation by the Fifa ethics judge, Joachim Eckert. The report did not name them.

Fifa says the ethics prosecutor, Michael Garcia, advised Sulser that the complaints were without merit.