Is it ok for a U.N. bureaucrat to accept a holiday bottle of booze?

"To receive or not to receive."

That is the choice the U.N. ethics office put before U.N. staff members as the organization confronts another holiday season, and the awkward question of whether to accept a gift from a U.N. diplomat or contractor doing business with the world body. Like most things at the United Nations, there is no easy answer.

"The holiday season and the New Year are around the corner!" the ethics office counseled in a message posted on the U.N.’s intranet. "It is that time of the year when exchanging gifts and showing hospitality is the order of the day for many cultures and customs. As we revel in holiday cheer, let us take a moment to reflect on our shared values and status as international civil servants."

"As UN staff members, we may be offered gifts from governmental and non-governmental sources alike," the note added. "While the values of the gifts can vary, and the intentions behind them pure, we should be mindful that giving or receiving gifts and hospitality can give rise to potential conflicts of interest. Accepting or giving a gift can create on-going obligations which could undermine our independence and impartiality."

Indeed, holiday giving at Turtle Bay can be a tricky business, particularly in an organization where foreign delegates dispense crates of Russian vodka, Scotch whisky, and wines from four corners of the Earth to U.N. officials. The former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan thought one shouldn’t turn down a gift so lightly as it might offend the cultural sensitivities of a well-meaning member state, where not giving on the holidays is considered bad form.

But the U.N. ethics office has remained something of a stickler. This year, it laid out some guidelines to navigate the holiday season without creating a diplomatic incident or compromising your integrity.

So, what is a U.N. civil servant to do?

To start, the ethics office counsels "You should not accept any honor, decoration, favor, gift or remuneration from any governmental sources. You should not accept any gift or favor from any source having or seeking to have any type of contractual relationship with the UN."

Ok, that sounds pretty straight-forward: Don’t accept any gifts.

Except, it’s ok to accept an "honor, decoration, favor, gift or remuneration from any non-governmental source" as long as you secure the approval of the U.N. secretary general, through the head of your department.

I’m not sure why non-governmental sources — who frequently try to influence decision making at the United Nations — are any less likely to lavish gifts on U.N. officials to curry favor than government officials or contractors.

But at least the rules are clear: no gifts from governments and contractors, but it’s ok to take something from a non-governmental source — whomever that may be — so long you get your boss to ask U.N. Secretary Ban Ki-moon to let you keep it, and he says yes.

Well, not exactly.

Actually, "We may accept on behalf of the Organization minor gifts of essentially nominal value from non-governmental sources but we must report them to our Heads of Office. We may also accept small gifts of food, chocolates or other sweets at the holiday season but these items should be reported and shared within your office or work unit."

Which begs the question: Is a bottle of booze — the most common holiday gift at the U.N. — considered a small gift, and if so, do staffers now have to share it with their office mates?

The answer is unclear, unless you happen to carry out U.N. "functions in sensitive areas such as procurement and investment management." Those U.N. employees, "are subject to higher standards," including a "zero tolerance policy regarding gifts and hospitality." Meaning: hand over the Stoli. For any one who remembers the story of how a corrupt executive underwrote a $6,000 night of drinking, strip clubs, and prostitutes for two U.N. procurement officers at the W Hotel this will probably seem like a sensible rule.

Oh yes, and one other thing.

If you accept a present, remember that "gifts are the property of the United Nations and should be disposed of by following Administrative Instruction ST/AI/2010/1."

According to the instruction, cash goes into a U.N. bank account, and gifts are to be turned over to a U.N. property manager to donate, sell, or discard. The cash proceeds of a gift sale — minus administrative costs of selling it — can be donated to the U.N. Nobel Peace Prize Memorial Fund.

"The reputation of the United Nations depends on the integrity of each of us. Let us continue to carry on the good name of our Organization during this festive season," according to the guidelines. But "When in doubt, please consult with the Ethics Office whose staff would be delighted to provide guidance."

Yes, please send me their number.

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