Ana María Garrido Ramos (born c. 1966)[1] is a former local government employee of the Ayuntamiento of Boadilla del Monte in the Madrid metropolitan area.[2] She is a key witness and whistleblower in the Gürtel case, an ongoing political corruption scandal in Spain.
In 1993,[1] Garrido Ramos started employment with the Ayuntamiento de Boadilla, working in the youth section. She became its head in 2007. In March 2008, Mayor Arturo González Panero chose to stand down[3] after a period of illness and went to stay in Costa Rica.[3] González Panero was later named in the Panama Papers.[4]
An internal company document suggested that he acted beyond his remit both geographically and in political and business dealings.[citation needed] Even though Garrido Ramos had knowledge of the entire contents of the document, she decided not to blow the whistle, fearing reprisals, and continued to work for the Ayuntamiento de Boadilla.
Somehow the anti-corruption organisation Manos Limpias ("Clean Hands") received the document, which it submitted to the Fiscalía Anticorrupción (a special committee of the Spanish Procurator-fiscal),[5] which prompted them to start investigations into what was to become the Gürtel case.[3] The 2011 indictment by examining magistrate Baltasar Garzón precipitated González Panero's resignation as mayor. In 2011 elections a new mayor, Antonio González Terol, took charge. González Panero returned to his managerial post as leader of the Youth Section until, in 2013, he was accused of workplace harassment.[5]
Garrido Ramos developed clinical depression due to her treatment at work.[1] In 2014, the employment tribunal of Móstoles, Madrid subpoenaed Garrido da por probada la situación de acoso laboral sufrida por Ana María Garrido Ramos ("To give evidence in the case of workplace harassment suffered by Ana María Garrido Ramos"),[2] whereon the Ayuntamiento de Boadilla terminated her employment with an out-of-court settlement of €96000 for "daños morales" ("moral damages"). Due to an appeal by Boadilla town hall, she has not received the sum as of September 2016.[1]
Garrido Ramos has advocated a law to improve whistleblower protection[1] (Protección al Denunciante de Corrupción). Her case has been closed. As of May 2016, she had sold most of her clothes and furniture, rented out her home, and was selling handmade bracelets for a living.[6]
In 2016, she was nominated for the "Encina de Oro" Award.[7]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Badcock, James (4 October 2016). "Whistle-blower who took on Spain's ruling elite". BBC News.
- ^ a b "La Justicia de la razón a Ana Garrido, testigo en la Gürtel: el Ayuntamiento 'popular' de Boadilla la acosó laboralmente" [Justice for Ana Garrido, witness in the Gürtel case: the 'people's' City of Boadilla harassed her at work]. www.elplural.com (in Spanish). 6 April 2016. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
- ^ a b c "Ana Garrido, la trabaja dora del Ayuntamiento de Boadilla que de nunció Gurtel, rompesusil encio para Info Boadilla" [Ana Garrido, the Ayuntamiento de Boadilla worker who gave evidence in the Gürtel case, breaks her silence to InfoBoadilla]. www.infoboadilla.com (in Spanish). 19 April 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
- ^ "Los contratos del Albondiguilla con las firmas 'offshore' en 'Los papeles de Panamá'" [Albondiguilla contracts with offshore firms in the "Panama Papers"]. elconfidencial.com (in Spanish). El Confidencial. 6 April 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
- ^ a b Fernández, D. (6 February 2014). "Un juez condena al Ayuntamiento de Boadilla por acoso laboral a una testigo de la Gürtel" [Judge condemns witness intimidation in the Gürtel case]. www.20minutos.es (in Spanish). 20 minutos. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
- ^ Minder, Raphael (14 May 2016). "Uncovering Corruption Is a Risky Endeavor in Spain". The New York Times.
- ^ "Solicitud del Premio "Encina de Oro" para Ana Garrido Ramos" [Application for the "Encina de Oro" Award for Ana Garrido Ramos]. plataformaxlahonestidad.es (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2016-05-26. Retrieved 25 September 2016 – via Wayback Machine.
External links
edit- (in Spanish) Facebook page