News from the Anti-Corruption Movement

This area provides highlights of the valuable work being done by Transparency International national chapters, members and Secretariat. Africa and the Middle East The Americas Asia and the Pacific Europe and Central Asia TI - Secretariat

The TI national chapter in Nigeria, Transparency in Nigeria, made a presentation to the Nigerian Senate on the proposed Freedom of Information Bill, which is presently before the two Houses of the National Assembly. The chapter strongly supports its passage into law, stressing that an Access to Information law is an indispensable tool for fighting corruption. The chapter urged the National Assembly to pass the bill expeditiously and suggested changing the short title of the bill to “Access to Information.”

Two series of investigative articles exposing illicit enrichment and drug trafficking in Paraguay and Peru, won the 2007 Award for Best Investigative Journalism Report on Corruption, awarded yearly by Transparency International for Latin America and the Caribbean (TILAC) and the Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS). The first prize of US $25,000 (€16,000) was shared between Mabel Rehnfeldt from the Paraguayan daily ABC Color and Américo Zambrano, from the Peruvian news magazine Caretas. Rehnfeldt and Zambrano were among 170 entries from 16 countries.

Rehnfeldt reported through a detailed investigation that the director of the world’s largest dam – the bi-national hydroelectric dam of Itaipú – abused his authority as a public official for self enrichment. The series of articles by Américo Zambrano claimed strong links between drug trafficking and the Sánchez Paredes family in Peru, as well as the family’s powerful influence on the political sphere and the judiciary. Zambrano’s stories led to a police investigation of 77 clan members and 120 family-owned companies for laundering drug trafficking proceeds.

For more information, please visit www.transparency.org/tilac/premio

The Journalist’s Network for Access to Public Information (Red Periodismo por el Acceso a la Información Pública) was launched in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The network was established to highlight access to public information as a tool for journalists as well as strengthening the norms that regulate the issue as an essential part of democracy. Despite several international treaties regulating this right, access to public information is not yet part of every country’s legislation at all levels of public administration.

The network’s website www.periodismo-aip.org includes a database of examples of journalists' reports where journalists used their right to access government information for their investigations. Also available is background information on the issue, comparatives of legislations, links and contacts of the media.

The initiative was put forward by the organisations: Acción Ciudadana, Participación Ciudadana, Organisation for Civil Rights (Asociación por los Derechos Civiles), the Press and Society Institute (Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS), the Foundation for the Freedom of the Press (Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP), and the Foundation Violeta Barros de Chamorro.

In June TI took part in the General Assembly of the Organisation of American States in Colombia. Under the topic Youth and Democratic Values, government representatives from the Americas adopted important resolutions for the fight against corruption in the region. These relate to the follow-up mechanism for the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC), as well as access to information and the strengthening of democracy.

During the Assembly, TI presented a set of recommendations to the foreign ministers. TI´s called for steps in the area of access to information, transparency of political party finance and the strengthening of the MESICIC, e.g. implementation of the evaluators to the country –as is done in the OECD Convention, the design and execution of a training programme of the evaluators and the need to adopt a strategy on how the MESICIC and the monitoring of the United Nations Convention against Corruption can mutually benefit each other.

To read the recommendations, please click here.

TI´s presentation to the Foreign Ministers live, please click here.

As part of the review process of the implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (IACAC), representatives from TI national chapters from Canada, Guatemala and the USA (the countries under review) presented to government representatives from the Americas their views on how their respective governments are implementing the IACAC in the topics under review: government procurement, government hiring, whistleblower protection and specific acts of corruption that should be classified as crimes.

After the presentations from civil society, governments met to evaluate the state of implementation in the countries under review. In conclusion, they issued reports on the level of implementation and made recommendations for improvements. They also agreed on the articles of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption that would be evaluated in the third round (from 2009): removal of tax benefits, translational bribery, illicit enrichment and extradition.

TI also presented a set of recommendations aimed at strengthening the follow-up mechanism of the IACAC.

Presentations form the chapters: Canada, Guatemala, USA

Reports adopted on the state of implementation: Canada, Guatemala, USA

TI has been active in monitoring the implementation of the 2006 Guatemala Declaration. As part of this, the 2nd follow-up meeting with civil society and government representatives was celebrated on 2 July in Honduras. It was agreed to establish a mechanism to monitor the implementation of the Declaration, which will involve both the governments and the civil society in a joint biannual evaluation with a common methodology.

Efforts to prevent corruption in poverty alleviation programmes and controlling political and electoral finance will be evaluated between July and November 2008. Seven other issues have been selected for assessment in this first evaluation round, including: conflict of interest, access to information, civil service, and the mechanisms to address complaints and protect whistleblowers. As these areas are also covered by the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, the plan is to combine efforts deriving from different anti-corruption agreements.

The meeting was attended by the chapters in Central America and the Dominican Republic, public officials from Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panama, as well as donors taking part in the initiative (Danida and AECID).

For more information, please click here.

On 12 June, TI-Canada held a symposium on “The Anatomy of Corruption in Canada: Its Causes and Prevention.” The panellists explored why people in high offices take the risks they do; what it is that makes people in power think they are above the law; and what is in the culture of others in power that actively discourages them from carrying out such practices. Addressing the psychological aspect of corruption, panelists included: Superintendent Stephen Foster, Director, Commercial Crime Branch, Royal Canadian Mounted Police; Dr. Ian Greene, Professor, Department of Political Science, York University; Huguette Labelle, Chair of TI; Norman Inkster, President INKSTER Incorporated and former Commissioner of the RCMP and former President of Interpol; and Tom Marshall, former General Counsel to the Attorney General of Ontario,.

Following the panel presentation, three international anti-corruption lawyers, Tim Martin, Jim Klotz, both TI-Canada Board Members, and Milos Barutciski, reported on an on-going TI-Canada project, “Deficiencies in Canada’s Anti-Corruption Laws that Deal with Domestic & Foreign Public Officials.” The purpose of the project is to look at the deficiencies in the law, administration and process of Canada’s anti-corruption laws and to suggest improvements, with regard to law, resources, administration and process, and financial investigations. Using a current corruption inquiry as a model, TI-Canada and TI-USA are collaborating on a comparative legal analysis of the approach Canadian vs. US law to the issue of corruption.

Transparencia por Colombia has published a guide on public procurement procedures, as a result of its programme Transparency and Accountability in the territorial level. The guide aims to help small and medium size municipalities in the management of their public procurement processes, so that these are carried out in a transparent and efficient manner, observing current rules. The guide was disseminated all over the country, with the help of the Colombian Federation of Municipalities. It can be downloaded from: www.transparenciacolombia.org.co.

On 15 July, Transparencia Paraguay (TP) presented its National Corruption Survey 2008. It is the first time in the country that a civil society organisation has monitored a government since its election. TP presented its first corruption survey in 2004, a year after former president Nicanor Duarte was elected.

In terms of corruption, the misappropriation of public goods by the executive and the bad management and discretionary use of the funds and revenues from the hydroelectric companies are among the biggest concerns for the Paraguayan citizens, according to the National Corruption Survey. Corruption is reportedly seen by Paraguayans as one of the biggest problems in the country after unemployment and insecurity.

However, the survey reports that citizens are much more aware now than four years ago about their rights and the negative effects of corruption on their lives. The majority of Paraguayans surveyed believe today that corruption will diminish in the coming years, and that the future government starting in August with President Lugo will be less corrupt.

For more information, please click here.

Transparencia Venezuela launched the 2008 edition of its System of Indicators of Municipal Transparency (SITM) that covers 71 municipalities in the country. The SITM evaluates the establishment of clear procedures in the management, access to public information, design and execution of the budget with citizen participation and accountability.

According to this year’s edition, 43 municipalities have improved significantly, while 26 have regressed. Moreover, 34 of the evaluated municipalities scored over 50 points (out of 100) in the evaluation, and 8 municipalities obtained more than 71, the highest scoring so far. For more information please visit www.transparencia.org.ve.

Despite the current anti-graft drive of the recent government over the past year and a half, corruption is still on the increase, according to a survey conducted by TI Bangladesh. Released in June, the report claims that corruption has increased in the fields of education, health, land administration, local government and NGOs. The report shows that corruption has actually decreased in some sectors, namely in law enforcement, judiciary, electricity, banking and tax, which the report states may be linked to the current anti-corruption drive. However, despite a slight decrease, law enforcement agencies still top the list with 97 per cent of households experiencing corruption when dealing with law enforcement agencies. Overall, two thirds of households experience some form of corruption. The survey was carried out in 5000 households and can be accessed here.

Transparency Maldives released its assessment report on the Maldivian electoral system which marked the initiation of the 'I Choose' voter education and domestic observation training programme for the upcoming elections. The assessment was carried out during a series of six participatory workshops and claims that public confidence in the electoral system was low. It also highlighted the widespread concern that the upcoming presidential elections will not be free and fair unless promised reforms are implemented. For a copy of the report please click here.

In June, youths from various high and secondary schools participated in a week long democracy camp organised by TI Papua New Guinea (PNG). The camp was aimed at imparting democracy and advocacy skills with the objective to engage youths in democracy, good governance, transparency advocacy and good leadership activities at the school and community levels. Speaking at the closing ceremony, TIPNG Chairman Mike Manning urged students to implement the democracy and advocacy skills they had learned when returning to school. The fifty primary and secondary students participating are involved in programmes encompassing human rights, support for women in politics, good governance, anti-corruption and HIV/AIDS. The democracy camp is part of the chapters Youth Democracy Camp project funded by the US State Department through the US Embassy in Port Moresby with support from a host of donor and corporate organisations in the country.

TIAP is greatly saddened at the unexpected news of TI PNG Chairman Mr. Mike John Manning’s, OL, OBE sudden passing. On behalf of the Asia Pacific Department at the TI Secretariat, we would like to extend our sincere condolences to our friends at TI PNG, the staff and the Board, and Michael’s family at this difficult time.

His passing away is truly a great loss to the anti-corruption movement and for TI. He was held in highest esteem by all who knew him and he will be sorely missed.

Transparency Solomon Islands applauded the Government and Minister of Forests Sir Allan Kemakeza for standing by their decision to increase the determined value for logs from US $78 to US $85 per cubic metre. The decision, which was announced on 1 June, is in line with the stated government policy, despite strong pressure from the logging association. A new system will be in place from 1 June, where the determined value schedule will be reviewed every three months by the ministry of forest and the Comptroller of Customs. The new system means that Solomon Islanders will receive a fair price for their log exports, while also ensuring that logging companies are not overly burdened if market prices fall.

Transparency International in Sri Lanka re-launched its website in June, with a more up-to-date design and an improved structure. Please visit www.tisrilanka.org.

A position paper released by TI Sri Lanka in June analyses the governance issues in the Sri Lankan Foreign Service. According to the paper, politically motivated appointments to the Foreign Service have undermined the integrity of the Sri Lankan Foreign Service. The position paper examines several critical issues involving recruitment and opens the issue for serious public debate. The paper can be found here.

Transparency International Vanuatu (TIV) is implementing a project aimed at strengthening access to civic education of communities from the outer islands. Launched in February 2007, the project enhances citizens’ civic awareness by conducting workshops in provinces of Vanuatu. Upon completion, this civic education awareness programme will have been implemented in each of 61 localities of Vanuatu. The three-day workshops aim to develop participant's education and information on their country's history, their rights and duties as citizens, basic ethics, democratic and anti-corruption principles, and electoral process and voting procedures. Attended by an audience of more than 400 participants, these workshops have successfully contributed to an increase in their political awareness. Participants have highlighted the need to improve the quality of public service, such as the monitoring of civil servants' performance, increased connection and exchange capacities between the islands, the provision of basic civic education and capacity reinforcement for grassroots population, and the protection of Vanuatu's waters from unauthorised external use.

This initiative targets remote and rural communities of these islands and seeks to contribute to the development of a social environment where educated citizens, aware of their rights, duties and the legitimate role expected from their leaders, are more politically involved and responsible. The project is supported by UNDEF. More information is available here.

One-day workshops on “Building Integrity and Transparency in Business Relationships” were held in Hanoi on 16 May and in Ho-Chin Ming City on 19 May. The workshops gave business leaders the opportunity to discuss the key priorities in Vietnam and to create an agenda of action for the future. The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) will be taking on the challenges to lead and manage the initiative to build up integrity and transparency in the business community with continued support from the co-hosting International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF), Transparency International (TI) and the Embassy of Sweden in Hanoi, and other interested organisations.

Since April, TI’s contact group in Ethiopia has been transmitting a weekly Amharic radio programme on issues of corruption. The programme intends to educate the public on the essence, manifestations and adverse effects of corruption, and contribute to reducing people’s tolerance of corruption as part of society. The programme also constitutes a forum for discussion on corruption mainly involving public, government, private sector and civil society. The programme is transmitted on radio Fana, FM 98.1, from 17:00 to 17:30 every Sunday.

From 23-27 June, TI in cooperation with the UNESCO and the Arab Administrative Development Organization (ARADO) organised a regional conference on Water Resources Management and Development in the Arab Region in Amman, Jordan. TI contributed with a key note address by TI-S Senior Programme Coordinator Arwa Hassan, as well as a presentation on corruption in the water sector. The 2008 Global Corruption Report on corruption in the water sector was presented in a press conference following the conference.

TI Denmark recently held a series of public seminars under the heading "Networking or Nepotism?", focusing on recent allegations of corruption in Greenland. In April a seminar was held in Copenhagen together with the Greenlandic association "Kalaallit Illuutaat" and in May a similar event took place in Nuuk in cooperation with the University of Greenland. Public interest in the seminars has been overwhelming and TI Denmark has therefore applied for funding to conduct a study on power and misuse of power in Greenland's politics and administration.

TI Georgia has published its Annual Report on its activities throughout 2007, including providing input into draft laws to the Parliament, monitoring government adherence to its national and international reform commitments, tracking and analysing pitfalls in reform efforts, conducting trainings for journalists and international study tours for NGO, media and local government representatives. The report in both Georgian and English can be accessed here.

“Fair Play” teams of Transparency International Hungary took part in a Marathon Relay on 8 June calling the attention for the results of the chapter’s research on corruption in the business sector and the negative impact of corruption on competitiveness. Representatives of foreign embassies alongside with Hungarian researchers and businesspeople took part in the event. On 9 June, TI Hungary launched its latest report on “Corruption Risks in the Business Sector in Hungary” during a press conference. The report is the second volume of the NIS study on Hungary which was published last December. The conference was well attended and featured high level speakers such as the Head of the Hungarian Competition Office. More information available at: www.transparency.hu/valtofutas

In May-June 2008 Kazakhstan ratified two main anti-corruption documents: the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and all its protocols. Transparency Kazakhstan, together with other partner organizations, had systematically advocated the ratification for the last five years. Several round-table discussions, workshops and advocacy campaigns were conducted as well as numerous direct meetings and conversations with public officials, systematically advocated for the ratification these documents. Transparency Kazakhstan was the first organisation that carried out translations of the UNCAC into Kazakh language, which then became the official translation.

Kazakhstan's ratification of these conventions was one important step for harmonising national regulations with international standards, intensifying international cooperation in the field of criminalisation, combating money laundering, asset recovery and international cooperation on investigation and prosecution, strengthening measures directed to more effective and efficient prevention and fighting corruption.

On 23 June, TI Kazakhstan held a high level conference on “Public Mechanisms on Preventing Corruption in the Republic of Kazakhstan”. At the conference, the role of public institutions, citizens’ engagement and the role of media in the fight against corruption were discussed. The conference was attended by government officials, civil society activists, academics and diplomats. In order to promote citizen’s engagement, TI Kazakhstan and TI Azerbaijan presented the work of ALACs in their country. The role of public institutions was presented by the chairman of the State Commission on the fight against corruption under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the chairman of the State Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan on fighting against Economic and Corruption Crimes among others. Co-sponsors of the conference were the European Commission’s Delegation, the OSCE Centre, the Friedrich Ebert Foundation and the Partnership for Transparency Fund.

In early June, TI’s chapter in Kyrgyzstan, together with the Anti-Corruption Agency of Kyrgyzstan organised a two-day conference on “Fighting Corruption on Kyrgyzstan. Problems and Perspectives”. The conference was very well attended including Anti-corruption Agencies from Pakistan, Malaysia and Latvia and several international organisations, such as the World Bank, UNDP, OSCE, an EC delegation, the US embassy and USAID. The Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan was one of the speakers at the event. The presentations focused on fighting corruption in the business sector, the civil service, the judiciary and in public procurement. Senior Programme Officer Marcela Rozo represented TI-S on the latter panel and spoke about international instruments covering anticorruption issues in public procurement and what the best internationally recommended practices for integrity in public procurement are. She also highlighted the role civil society can play in the fight against corruption and how it could make best use of the Integrity Pacts as a possible tool. The outcome of the conference was a list of recommendations for each of the four sectors, which will be published together with the analysis in a book later this year. Also, the Anti-corruption Agencies from Kyrgyzstan and Malaysia signed an MOU during the conference.

TI Mongolia (TI-M) initiated its anti-corruption trainings on preventing corruption in public procurement and judicial systems. Between 28 April and 3 July, 25 training sessions were held for over 420 judges all over Mongolia, NGOs who monitor judges' performance, and 20 investigators of the Investigative Unit under the Prosecutor Office, as well as 40 auditors of the State Audit Authority. The first part of the one-day training was dedicated to TI policies and TI-M activities, a brief introduction to draft Conflict of Interest Law and the means of preventing corruption in public procurement. The second half was lead by a judge from the Capital City Administrative Court and covered the general situation of the judiciary in the country, based on the 2007 Global Corruption Report, as well as articles of the existing Mongolian law on judiciary and some regulations, which may affect decisions of judges and thus create "undue influence" on judges’ decisions.

The objective is to prevent and curb corruption in judicial systems, which is considered very prone to corruption, according to the Santmaral survey conducted on behalf of the USAID's Judicial Reform Project. Despite this evidence, the training sessions are the first ever to cover anti-corruption strategies. The workshops have been made possible in cooperation with the General Council of Courts and the Capital City Administrative Court and funded jointly by the British Embassy and the Partnership for Transparency Fund.

On May 20, TI Romania was awarded a special prize at the Civil Society Gala, organised by Millennium Communications in Bucharest for its “Fără şpagă” (No bribe) project. Three other projects of TI Romania received honorary mentions, namely the projects on legal aid, money laundering and the independence of the judiciary system. TI Romania had entered five of its completed projects into the competition, in all 115 projects participated. The prizes are awarded in order to recognize initiatives improving life within a community and to reward the civic spirit and social responsibility in Romania through a contest organised on four thematic sections.

More Information: http://www.galasocietatiicivile.ro/view_stire.php?id=93 (in Romanian)

In February, Huguette Labelle, Chair of TI, took part in the Carter Center’s International Conference on the Right to Public Information. Labelle joined more than 125 participants from 40 countries, representing governments, civil society, international organisations and financial institutions, private sector, donors and scholars, to discuss the successes and future challenges to the establishment of a right of access to information. The result of the conference was The Atlanta Declaration and Plan of Action, which serves as a framework for advancing this human right. The Declaration calls on all states and intergovernmental organisations to enact legislation and instruments for the exercise, full implementation and effective enforcement of this right. It further encourages all stakeholders to take concrete steps to establish, develop, protect and promote the right of access to information.
To read the Declaration, please click here.

On 23 June, the European Commission launched a lobbyists' register, initiated by the Commission Vice-President, Siim Kallas. TI welcomes the initiative, but urges the Commission to think ahead, and to use the lessons learned from its register for the establishment of a mandatory inter-institutional register in 2009, as called for by the European Parliament in April 2008. The voluntary Commission register should only be seen as a first step and an interim solution, and TI supports the Parliament’s call for developing it as a strong, joint register for Council, Parliament and Commission, building upon the experience and the infrastructure of the European Commission register. To read TI’s full recommendations on the Commission register code of conduct please see: www.transparencyinternational.eu

In June, TI submitted a contribution to the European Commission consultation on "decentralisation and local governance". TI highlighted the corruption risk at local and regional level due to weak management capacities. As regional and local control bodies and audit institutions are still in the process of building their capacities, the risk for corruption at these levels continues to be high. The written contribution can be downloaded here.

In June, TI released its 2008 Progress Report on Enforcement of the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. The report shows that more than ten years after the adoption of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, there is a dangerous stalemate on enforcement. According to the report there has been significant enforcement by 16 governments, but little or no enforcement by 18 other governments. The report also includes case studies on investigations involving Alstom, AWB, BAE Systems, Halliburton, IMPSA and EME, and Siemens.

The report provides a country-by-country analysis of systems for enforcing the prohibition on foreign bribery. It also looks at the state of access to information regulations, which dictate whether observers can sufficiently evaluate progress on enforcement and create pressure on government to improve their performance.

The TI OECD Progress Report 2008 can be accessed here.

On the eve of the Hokkaido Toyako G8 Summit, TI’s TI's National Chapter Working Group issued its second annual G8 Progress Report, assessing G8 action on key commitments to reduce corruption and concluding that G8 performance falls short of the mark with profound adverse consequences for the global anti-corruption agenda as well as broader G8 goals.

According to the report, Canada, Japan and the UK have failed to demonstrate enforcement of their foreign bribery laws despite their commitment to stem foreign bribery and its distorting effects on competition and development. The report also criticised Germany, Italy and Japan for still not having taken action to ratify and implement the United Nations Convention against Corruption, which all G8 leaders have committed to.

The TI G8 Progress Report 2008 can be accessed here.

In 2007, the global TI coalition proved yet again to be a powerful, worldwide force against corruption. Encompassing the entire TI movement, the Annual Report 2007 provides an insight into the committed efforts of TI national chapters and coalition partners around the world to inform people, business and government of the devastating effects of corruption, and provide them with the tools to effectively tackle it.

The English language Annual Report can be accessed here. The French and Spanish language versions will be available shortly.