Secretary General of Interpol calls for Union President Sullivan ‘to resign or take a leave of absence’

Urging Sullivan to not be “guided by his own interests”, pressure mounts for Sullivan’s resignation


The Secretary General of Interpol has cancelled his appearance at the Union over the Ben Sullivan debacle. 

In a statement released today, Ronald Noble has called for Union president Ben Sullivan’s resignation over the scandal surrounding him and the Society.

Noble was contacted by OUSU Women’s Officer Sarah Pine and St Hilda’s student Helena Dollimore, the authors of an open letter calling for Sullivan to resign. It has been signed by Laurie Penny, Caroline Criado-Perez, Owen Jones and President elect LJ Trup, as well as numerous officials within OUSU.

Noble has declined to speak at the Union and instead urges Sullivan to resign.

Ronald Noble has been Secretary General of Interpol since 2000

“What should the head of a society like the Oxford Union do if he is under investigation for rape and attempted rape?” Secretary Noble wrote.

“In my view, he should be guided by the best interests of his organization.

“He should not be guided by his own interests.

“In this case my advice to Ben Sullivan would be either to resign or take a leave of absence until the criminal investigation has been completed.

“INTERPOL has attempted to contact the Oxford Union since reports of the allegations against Ben Sullivan first surfaced. We have received no response to our enquiries.

“Consequently I have decided to withdraw my participation as a speaker at the Oxford Union on Friday 30 May 2014.”