A former staff member of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) is suing the agency, claiming gross negligence and failure in duty of care after he was kidnapped and shot in Dadaab, Kenya.

Project manager Steve Dennis was travelling in a convoy through the camp when his car came under fire by kidnappers. A driver was killed, Steve was shot in the leg and he and three other colleagues were taken captive.



After four days of being marched towards the Somali border, they were rescued when a pro-government Somali group attacked their kidnappers and freed them.



Since the incident Dennis, a highly experienced field project manager with previous postings in Sri Lanka, Ivory Coast, Chad, South Sudan and Somalia, has suffered from physical problems resulting from his gunshot wound, and post-traumatic stress disorder, with symptoms including insomnia and acute hyper-vigilance. “I was a zombie for months afterwards,” he says.

After the incident, he began to look into what had happened and claims to have found that NRC’s security measures in place at the time were lax and ineffective. “I discovered there were extreme shortfalls in the investigation around the incident and evidence that was uncovered indicated significant errors were made.”



He also believes the support the organisation offered him was inadequate. In addition to what he claims was insufficient post incident debriefing and support, Dennis says he was provided with a financial settlement from NRC’s insurers that was not sufficient to cover his personal losses.

In the years since, Dennis has learned that the damage to his leg may be permanent. In addition, his PTSD is so severe that he now accepts he will never return to the field and that his career in frontline aid work is over.



He has filed two claims against NRC, for support for physical and psychological damage covering personal financial losses, and gross negligence in duty of care. Having exhausted his own funds, he has now turned to crowdfunding his legal costs: so far, he has raised $27,000.



Dennis’s case may not be the first of its kind, but it is certainly one of the most high-profile cases to address an issue much talked about in the aid world. “I have seen too many cases where security management in insecure places was less than stellar,” comments one donor to his appeal. “I stopped working as an aid worker because I lost trust [in] the NGO I worked for to evacuate me in case I required it,” says another, who wished to remain anonymous. “I think what you are doing is important for aid workers and the people they provide service to.”



Brendan McDonald, of the #bewellservewell campaign that advocates for systematic changes in the way aid agencies care for staff, believes that there are plenty of other aid workers who have such concerns about their NGOs. “I know of many other aid workers who have suffered serious and lasting mental and physical problems as a result of their work, and who feel strongly that their agencies have not provided adequate care. This is a seriously under-recognised problem across the industry.”



One security expert who wished to remain anonymous, who has specific experience working with aid agencies in Kenya and Dadaab, agrees Dennis’ case raises a bigger issue . “The aid system is very far behind the curve when it comes to managing its staff in these situations, certainly compared to militaries,” he says. “I’ve seen numerous people with what certainly appear to be the symptoms of trauma leading up to PTSD still in the field, still operating and in senior positions.”



Although he is one of only a handful of aid workers who have taken their agencies to court, Dennis believes this is due to a combination of fear, unwillingness to admit weakness and what such a step might do to a career, rather than because aid agencies have high standards of security and aftercare. “I get a huge reaction when I talk to colleagues,” he says. “There are so many people who have scary stories, bad stories, stories that they are still living in where they feel under supported and dangerous situations.”

Dennis says that financial settlement is not the main objective of his case. “I would like my personal losses covered. But primarily I want an independent review of the incident and a public statement if there is negligence found.”

“I’ve spent three years of my life on this and it’s been such a challenge to relationships, to my family, to my own sanity. I used to run massive projects. I ran a hospital with over 200 staff. Now I have a hard time getting through a traffic jam without having to do breathing exercises for 45 minutes. The currency I’m dealing with is emotional energy and time. And I can understand deeply why other people don’t take out these actions.”

Dennis says that he hopes that the case will make aid agencies think more carefully about whether they have consistently applied duty of care and whether they have done everything reasonable to prevent an incident like his.



“Like everyone going into a risky situation for work, I believe there’s a minimum level of training and procedures required and when it’s not there I believe there should be accountability for it.”

“NRC deeply regrets the traumatic experience suffered by Steve Dennis and other colleagues in June 2012,” the organisation told the Guardian. “Safety for our staff is a high priority and we constantly strive to ensure a safe working environment for all our staff, strengthen our risk management culture and security systems, and to learn from incidents.



“We have been in dialogue with Steve Dennis and NRC regrets that we have not been able to reach an agreement so far. We will continue our efforts to find a solution. The case involves important issues that will be fully examined through the proceedings. The court case, which will take place in Oslo, has been scheduled for late October. Beyond this we cannot comment on the case.”



Join our community of development professionals and humanitarians. Follow @GuardianGDP on Twitter.