Letter to Leo

~ boernieisaway

Open letter to Leo Emmanuel, CEO of The Green Lion.

Dear Leo,

On February 10th 2020 15:36 Thai time you called me to talk me out of the upcoming legal dispute with The Green Lion. At some point you raised your voice, making it very clear that the brand “The Green Lion” was not to be touched as it was yours, not Patrick Franssen’s. You emphasized that if the brand was affected, you’d have to get involved.

Back then I understood this as a threat. But I’ve kept thinking about it ever since and came to realize that I should much rather understand it as a promise.

Mr Patrick Franssen has brought a bad reputation to your brand, your organization and the hard work many of the local teams do. In court I was able to prove that his words were lies and his threats unjust. He has damaged The Green Lion and probably even the entire volunteer travel industry.

In times like these when trust is on the line it’s important to be transparent. Mistakes have been made, people have been hurt. You yourself have been aware of what was going on and were silently complicit for a long time. The public will question if supporting an organization like The Green Lion is still morally justifiable. Let’s work together to restore trust. I will take the first step towards transparency by publishing my detailed diary of the conflict and legal dispute with Patrick, translations of publicly available financial records of The Green Lion, eye whiteness testimony on grave cases of misconduct and much more.

This will give you a chance to prove that you and The Green Lion are ready to learn and change. To demonstrate to the public that what happened was a mistake at the responsibility of individuals. And if you play your cards right, outgrow yourself, lead The Green Lion through a tough and honest transformation process and transparently share your learnings with the public, The Green Lion could take a leading role in ethical travel. The end of The Green Lion we know today could be the beginning of a new and better The Green Lion.

You promised to get involved. Now I’m here to call in your favor. Help me owe up to past mistakes, make things right and build The Green Lion of tomorrow.

My expectations are:

  • Mr. Patrick Franssen immediately leaves management of The Green Lion
  • Mr. Patrick Franssen communicates to all travel agent partners of The Green Lion that he will no longer be part of The Green Lion, effective immediately
  • Mr. Patrick Franssen signs a legally binding document that he will get no closer than 500 meters to The Green Lion’s property and participant accommodation in Hua Hin
  • Mr. Patrick Franssen apologizes to his victims
  • Mr. Patrick Franssen refunds me for all the expenses I had in the course of sueing him

Thanks a lot for your support