Transparency International to organise International Anti-Corruption Conference

Peruvian Attorney General meets NGO in Berlin

Transparency International (TI) will serve as the secretariat for the International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) for the first time next year. TI representatives met with the IACC-Council and the Peruvian Attorney General, Dr. Blanca Nélida Colán, in Berlin this week to prepare the conference, which is the largest international forum of its kind. The international non-governmental organisation against corruption has its headquarters in Berlin.

The chairman of TI, Mr. Peter Eigen, expects strong pressure on governments to emanate from the 5-day conference to move more decisively against corruption. "Latin America has played a crucial role in the fight against corruption," he said, with strong initiatives being taken by citizens, governments and the Organisation of American States (OAS) alike. This had created a friendly political climate for the activities of TI, he stated. With the foundation of TI-LAC (TI Latin American & Caribbean Countries) South America will become the first region in which TI creates regional structures. Mr. Eigen also announced the establishment of a National Chapter in Peru soon.

The 8th IACC is to be held in Lima from September 7th to 11th. It will be attended by some 1,000 anti-corruption experts from all around the world and is expected to give strategies aimed at curbing corruption a new push. Citing the central theme of next year's conference - "The State & Civil Society in the Fight Against Corruption" - Mr. Eigen declared: "Anti-corruption measures imposed from above will prove fruitless. In contast, it is necessary to form coalitions against corruption involving all segments of society." Mr. Eigen continued that "integrity and transparency have to be rooted on all levels and to be owned by people to overcome corruption."

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