blowers ah. 2 2 2 2 patricia michel, a was a senior administrative clerk working in the police firearms department in the free state province of south africa. in 2018, she made a protected disclosure. der commanding officer, that illegal firearms destined for destruction were being sold by police officials to criminal syndicates. nothing came of her complaint. so she reported it to the former national police commissioner general keyless italy in 2020. so totally referred the case to the head of the priority crimes division in the free state who appointed a task force to investigate. soon afterwards, mashaila found out that her identity as the whistleblower had been compromised. the investigation was immediately halted. according to my chalet, it has never been revived. in january 2021, michelle. it blew the whistle again. this time she made

a protected disclosure to so totally of alleged corruption and abuse of power by senior police officials in the free state. the information she sent to said totally included allegations of irregular appointments and promotions and of the misuse of state resources. rather than being acted on michelle, his expectation of confidentiality was breached again. and her complaint found its way back to the very same provincial managers. she had blown the whistle on the officers. michelle had implicated then embarked on a terrifying campaign of retaliation against her. one of the police generals she had implicated, opened a harassment case against my chalet and obtained a protective order. police officials investigating the harassment case then seized michelle, his phone while she was at work using what she says was a fake warrant. patricia, my chalets phone is still in the possession of the south african police service. and if that wasn't enough, michelle, i found herself under physical surveillance by lease officers using unmarked cars.

the car, michelle a uses to collect her younger son from boarding school was followed all the way back to her house in november, 2021. michelle is digital communications, also appear to be under surveillance. her bank has warned her about the disclosure of her personal data. in january 2022 my chalet was charged with misconduct for bringing the police into disrepute after publicly calling for the removal of the free state police management. after 15 years of service, michelle was dismissed after she refused to attend to misconduct hearing chaired by one of the police officials that she had implicated in her initial complaint. shortly afterwards, one of her former police colleagues warned her that there were plans to have her arrested and thrown in jail without being registered on the prison system and killed. now patricia shelley lives in hiding in different locations, fearing for her life. a police threat assessment confirmed her life was indeed at risk. she says in june 2022 shots were fired at her brother in an attempt to kill

him after he refused to disclose her whereabouts to members of the free state police management. according to an essay b, c interview aired in september 2022. living and hiding has taken its toll and michelle, his family, and their relationships. she has a 9 year old son who she can see only occasionally. now. shortly after the interview was aired, michel, a received information that the police general with a protective order against her, had given an instruction that she should be arrested. days later, a large contingent of police arrived at her house and harassed her and her family members. this happened even though she had a prior arrangement with the investigating officer to meet him with her lawyer in his office to be charged. that was subsequently done threats to her life continue. most recently, in november, 2022, her son in law was driving her to a safe house. when she noticed they were being tailed by a black ford ranger pickup truck without vehicle registration plates. she was

convinced the occupants were assassins who had been sent to kill her. a high speed car chase ensued. michelle, a son in law, eventually shook off their pursuers and a warrant come to you to have you. thanks for joining us, joe. we are very happy and ivy's and loving horn and a leg and they did when they did that and they at a very be voted a employee thing. and it may be that a whistleblower disclosure through your chain of command, bad person with a that you as the x, a linked to the court option that i had for a several different whistleblower disclosures. did the system ever work for you the way it was supposed to work? the system never worked for me. the system never. i wind every way. i knock on it every door. did a good thing or lackley or misha. i am the former, were in a tor did they they after he scorned that, was that

a whistleblower status was the 1st thing that you noticed and how in an on the at the day my my, my children's car was followed from the boarding school. apt to bloom printing i and then in february, after i went to the police station to open a case against the, the free slave management. i received the information from a former colleague to tell me that you got the information from a, a person the know it all written of. i select the, did they explain? stayed at the dep at the general, did i implicated in this product? the disclosure was going to open a criminal case against me, whereby i was going to be arrested in saying to an own does vanished into the system without anyone knowing way higher than the south african public half to be appreciative of what it was that you were britain in the, in the public. i court media that, that, that, that ted,

there's somebody in am going to put everything outdated. should anything happens to me that you should be held responsible for my dad because i've not on his office door as a last resort in i never got any response. i did go on the response from his p. a referred me back to the policeman as the whom i also implicated in the garage. so i'd, i'd, i'd written numerous emails to his office, he's p, a kept on repairing me bit. and they said they, i decided i'm going to appear now openly the, to him, to get attention in a, from that you on a day when i stack that to get me yet age. and what about the people in the legal profession? this seems like a natural case around which lawyers would want to rally just for the sake of protecting the rule of law. have you had much in the way of support from,

from attorneys around south africa? no. oh, i know, and i haven't had my ge and assistance from attorneys, they only had to, as system did a what do for my whistle groups? i whistleblower groups in as some of the attendees who are gave me some advise bad is ab, i attended kings to me and say, you know what? i'm going to represent you in this. we're appreciate is definitely it me i haven't received. it says that me to get my story out the i that i to reach out chalet about her odyssey as a, with the in service of its cigarettes. the bolts, anybody plays it. so it's all of these on to the proof of why the, why is it up job will oh,

woman terean's for example. anybody in the capital who has rallied to your side now noted, or instead i am receiving a lot of resistance. i've recently made a request to the police portfolio committee of parliament to make a presentation to them regarding my situation. and they are well aware that there was a greater salesman than on may live. it was rejected by the steps management in a day the chairperson or the portfolio may be rejected as they spin, based on the fact that she was told by the south african management data assessment was not in the correct format. at the address essential salesman, should it be that dan, detto graham intelligence officer who did risk assessment informed them that the

salesman informed did them, did the doing at risk assessment is going to to delay it and my live more because at risk assessment is that it assessment whereby they massey no my where abouts they mass no, my family's later about they mass know everything about that. and they told him that since i'm already in hiding in, says they out the been already attempts on my left. he can nor do assessment and that that it assessment was dan on they waste because they wanted that this isn't why the data system was submitted to them they, they change and they know they don't want to read the system anymore. the now one dentist but there's just no good news in this experience. everything that a whistleblower would hope would not happen, has happened to you lately you've been placed in personal danger because of your

whistle blowing. even your life and the lives of your family members have been placed in danger. how are you dealing with that? obviously, you can't live under these conditions over the long term. what are you hoping for here? you know, as a john is very, very difficult to left like this. yeah. at being a whistleblower. what in south, if that is late signing at bait, sanders, i'm sure you have you read the stories you've had it. almost all i know was the bill was a came out publicly to blow the whistle is be killed in at that reason i believe i am still alive is because i refuse to get at to add to book a protection from the state to be put in was so in, in, in am a state protection because they, it is the moment. if you are going to have to do it, almost the value in ours is we are

being put in, in, in a whistleblower protection in south africa is lag you handing your life over to them on nestle the police? yes. and i believe that even when spell and alive is because i refused to be put in the whistleblower protection because the bury people who as opposed to protect you, is that people who ad responsible for all the killings in a i noted for a fake i have evidence to, to a tasty patricia after i blew the whistle on the c, i s torture program. i was arrested and charged under the espionage act and i ended up spending 23 months in prison here in the united states. but my whistle blowing was accompanied by great support, widespread support in the legal community and among international whistleblower organizations. even many in the media rallied to my side. tell us a little bit about your support. oh,

and where it's coming from. i. i don't. i don't want to believe like my brain doesn't want to process that everybody has walked away from you. have you received any amount of support, anywhere else in south africa society? he is disappointed i received in this essay d is in the form of my a was a bill was the board groups in row support groups at the, at their state tape. so we're, so bill was they add the as sam psychologist, the as social workers, like john black a day and human rights it, it is like merely to has in a yeah. that there are a few people who would really, really support that me through death. if not for them, i don't know in even for laugh i i received some friends from black, a support grands to pay for my accommodation and frank lane, defenders also i received for some friends from them to play. val now commendation

bad. you know, most of these fans are only a ones or so most of the time i am barely less. i am as i, i don't even know. and most of the times away is the next month or in. going to come from back the is i so after so far, i would a hell of order. ida was obama was i am i managed to, to, to keep to, to keep it together? well, you raise a very important point there. this is something that i've, i've read about and people have told me about for, for years that it's a consistent theme through modern history for whistleblowers. that once they make their disclosures, they never make a financial come back. this is, this is a big problem with whistle blowing because, you know, without whistleblowers who's going to watch government, for example, who's going to hold people accountable for their actions. i'm curious as to whether

or not you've had any support from former colleagues from a family members from friends as anybody reached out to, to help you get through this experience. yes, i have a is a, a from, from, from a former colleagues. he is a leg that moral support the family, moral support that graham intelligence officer were at bay for physical, physical protection in support. i don't know. you as actually charged the pad mentally for, for, for, for pro take didn't mean comes of these are a fountains ah, bad. you just kept on telling them, did until you dismissed me. i'm not going to go on a pro tip dinner because this bad of my job. he was charged ipad mentally because he even refused to, to change the content of the, of their an at the,

at greater salesman on day interaction in u. s. found not guilty in that denial. so he is a ye stay a for me on a daily basis. if i have to go to a sam we like next tuesday, i am as go to court for their asthma charges against me. you will be there with me all the way, making sure that there is no rate here at around me in yeah, things like that. i know that it feels like you have the weight of the entire south african government falling on your head right now. certainly that's how i felt when i was arrested. but tell us about your family about your children and your brother . how are your family members taking all of this pressure? you know, and john is very, very difficult, especially for my youngest son. he is now 11 years old. i mean, by last year i went in hiding february,

doing deep in deep into 2. and he had to manage that entire year without me while he was so used to me, i used to do everything for him. yeah, i'll be more do his own work. yeah, i mean east, east. you select what lease lay west then years old at a time in my my my, my made my daughters my, my daughter a. my other daughter is in diversity. she manage on her own my san, my ad. mean my family. let me say this, there's a, our saga actually destroyed my family because there is no family life or my children that rides is being, is being infringed because in terms of the children's at my children also have the basic rights of being a tad bit by the parents, my child may tell them as now grow up without a mad,

and we don't know for how long is this going to keep on in terms of the agenda base violence. i believe that the government is committed mad meeting, a huge agenda, base violence against me is a woman. i am an am a woman in the government is not a protecting me. instead, the government are the ones will add a tele dinner, isn't. so he is a my, my, my family is destroyed because no family will survive through something. you're absolutely right. patricia mashaila, you are a role model. thank you so much for joining us. we wish you the very best of luck facilities, the great greek historian said, the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike. and yet, notwithstanding, go out and meet it. that is what patricia michelle did. we need more whistleblowers like her. i'd like to thank our guest, patricia michelle for joining us. and thanks to our viewers for joining us for

another episode of the whistle blowers, i'm john kerry. aku, we'll see you next time. with a ah us is a danger to the world as it is. and cuz it has all this economic power that it uses for the military. these are sick and twisted people. they care about nothing but money empower i. it's not even hate. i think i think they're in different they just won't want to empower and they don't, they're indifferent to who dice and as long as they can get that long empower

ah, ah, i will ensure that joe biden does not receive for more years. do you believe trump as a general rule? no, never. we must conduct a top to bottom overhaul to clean out the festering rod and corruption of washington dc abided as pushing us to world war 3. i mean, i a you have to consider that. that is the worst, i mean, we should never be in a position the u. s. has no business in ukraine with

when i was so it seemed wrong when i just don't know. i mean, you have to figure out this thing becomes the advocate and engagement equals the trail. when so many find themselves worlds apart, we choose to look for common ground. a . ah, dozens are injured in hundreds, arrested after israeli security forces rated jerusalem attacking palestinian

worshippers, who came to pray during the holy month of ramadan. also my favorite, our favorite because our country is going to hell. i demise of america as a great power and the fall of the dollar as a global currency as ours after he pleaded not guilty on $34.00 charges which could land him 130 years in jail. leaders tried to china while condemning big game for stepping up relations with russia.