IMF board split on how to react to Dominique Strauss-Kahn detention

Lawyers for International Monetary Fund seek clarification from managing director amid clamour for his resignation Lawyers for the International Monetary Fund are pushing for Dominique Strauss-Kahn to clarify his position as he sits in jail facing charges of sexual assault with the IMF’s board split on what to do next. IMF officials have yet to speak to their managing director since his arrest on Sunday for an alleged attack on a chambermaid at a New York hotel, and pressure is mounting on the institution, which plays a critical role in global finance, to appoint a new head. The US treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, and European finance ministers have made it clear they believe he should resign. Strauss-Kahn, who was denied bail and is considered a flight risk, is being held in Rikers Island prison in New York. According to city officials, the only people with access to the IMF boss are his family and his lawyers. Sources close to the IMF say its board is split on how to proceed. Strauss-Kahn’s deputy, John Lipsky, has stepped in on an interim basis, but both men had been planning to retire shortly even before the scandal broke. The race to succeed Strauss-Kahn has now intensified with candidates from the developing world pushing for senior jobs that have traditionally been dominated by Europeans. Some IMF members believe Strauss-Kahn should resign as soon as possible, arguing the scandal is damaging the institution. But there are others who argue their boss has yet to give his side of the story and that the IMF should not bow to pressure until more details emerge. IMF officials did not return calls for comment. But the pressure is building on the IMF to do something. At a speech in New York, Geithner made clear the US believed the institution needed to act. “[Strauss-Kahn] is obviously not in a position to run the IMF and it is important that the board of the IMF formally put in place for an interim period someone to act as managing director,” Geithner said. Strauss-Kahn’s lawyers will be in court again on Friday, when a grand jury is expected to announce the decision to put their client on trial, and are expected to press once more for bail. Professor John Coffee of Columbia Law School said Strauss-Kahn could be out of jail by the weekend if his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, could come up with a plan that appeases the judge. New York chief assistant district attorney Daniel Alonso successfully argued Strauss-Kahn was a flight risk and compared him to film director Roman Polanski, who fled the US after being accused of having sex with an under-age girl. Coffee said Brafman was one of the most experienced lawyers working in the US and would more than likely find a solution that would get his client out on bail. “Even Bernie Madoff got bail,” said Coffee. “And he was a flight risk.” Coffee said that, like Madoff, Strauss-Kahn might have to employ an expensive 24-hour surveillance team to monitor his movements while he is placed under effective house arrest in an apartment or hotel. Dominique Strauss-Kahn IMF New York United States Timothy Geithner Dominic Rushe guardian.co.uk

Posted by on May 18, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.