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This area provides highlights of the valuable work of the anti-corruption movement, championing a world free of corruption. This month highlights the following stories: |
New anti-corruption opportunities in Latin America
By Marta Erquicia
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The Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) and the Organisation of American States (OAS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in March 2007 to implement anti-corruption measures in their work. The MoU is based upon recommendations from the Inter-American Convention against Corruption’s monitoring mechanism (MESICIC). The Norwegian government has committed to provide the IADB with US $4.9 million over three years to implement projects to promote transparency and access to information as ways to combat corruption. |
These initiatives are important steps towards curbing corruption in Latin America, and will further encourage improving integrity levels and the implementation of international conventions. Transparency International’s (TI) chair, Huguette Labelle, welcomes the MoU. “This initiative is a first step to welcome an opportunity to collaborate in the design an implementation of projects resulting from it and we hope that this translates into real action to reduce corruption levels in the Americas,” she said in a statement. TI cautions, however, these initiatives must include the participation of civil society as an outside monitor in order to be as effective as possible. More information at: www.transparency.org/news_room/latest_news/press_releases/2007/2007_03_30_oas_inter_american_development_bank .
Presidential candidates engage on proposals by Transparence-International France
By Georg Neumann
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With France’s 2007 presidential elections drawing closer, Transparence-International France (TI France) put issues of anti-corruption and transparency high on the national agenda by engaging candidates for the presidency. |
Presidential candidates François Bayrou, Olivier Besancenot, Marie-Georges Buffet, Jean-Marie Le Pen, Ségolène Royal, Nicolas Sarkozy and Dominique Voynet answered questions on proposals made by TI France to prevent corruption or to remove corruption risks in education, political party financing, public contracting, whistle blowing, development aid, international judiciary cooperation, national defence and France’s extractive industries.
While the candidates generally agreed on and committed to the anti-corruption proposals made by TI France, the question of limited access to information for public documents involving national security or higher interests (“Secret défense”) and limiting the political mandate to two periods provoked differing answers.
TI France points out that it is up to the public to hold their politicians accountable to seeing these anti-corruption proposals through and has committed to monitoring the effective follow-up and implementation of these proposals.
To read more, please see: www.transparence-france.org
Increasing transparency in European Union funds
By Kate Sturgess
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A focus of Transparency International’s work on the level of the European Union (EU) has been campaigning for more transparency in the distribution and expenditure of EU funds. Access to information is fundamental to show citizens how the EU allocates its European tax dollars and empower them to hold governments accountable for subsidies received. One such way to increase the accountability is through public websites. |
Recently, the website Farmsubsidy.org was honoured by Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) Inc with the 2006 IRE Award for investigative reporting. The work of the website’s three founders, journalists Jack Thurston, Brigitte Alfter, and Nils Mulvad, has been groundbreaking in disclosing farm subsidies in Europe through the website and its database. The website uses national freedom of information laws to push European governments to release detailed data on the distribution of Europe's € 48.5 billion annual farm subsidy payments.
Farmsubsidy.org served as a useful resource for TI’s Transparency Through Awareness (TTA) project, which in 2005 and 2006, contributed to the effective and transparent use of EU funds for new member states through increasing public and civil society understanding of their purpose, distribution and use. TI coordinated the implementation of the TTA project with National Chapters and contact groups in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia.