Author Archives: Richard Messick

UNCAC Coalition Seeks Input on Improvements to UNCAC Implementation Review Mechanism

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GAB just learned of the UNCAC Coalition’s request for comments on a paper recommending ways to strengthen review of state’s compliance with the provisions of the UN Convention Against Corruption. Though the timeline is tight (August 8) and it’s the height of vacation season for Northern Hemisphere readers, please take a moment to examine the paper and offer thoughts. This is an important initiative by one of the NGOs leading the fight to combat corruption in all nations.

The UNCAC Coalition is launching a campaign calling for States to make the UNCAC review mechanism #FitForPurpose. The aim is for the next UNCAC Conference of the States Parties (CoSP) in 2025 to agree on a stronger review mechanism for the next review phase. We want to make sure that our campaign reflects the experiences and views of our global anti-corruption community.

The Coalition’s proposals to strengthen and improve the IRM are described in this Google Doc – please provide your input and thoughts by 8 August, by adding comments there (including your name and organization).

We are seeking your feedback on 

  1. whether there are elements that are missing or could be better formulated, 
  2. whether you agree with the proposed measures, and
  3. which elements should be prioritized.

We will use your input and feedback to refine the priorities of our advocacy over the next one and a half years as States discuss and negotiate what the next phase of the UNCAC IRM will look like. 

There is wide agreement that the UNCAC review mechanism in its current phase has numerous weaknesses that make it ineffective in holding States to account for their anti-corruption commitments, including a lack of transparency and inclusiveness, a lengthy and inefficient review process and no structured follow-up process.

Whistleblowers in Ukraine: Successes and Challenges in Ukraine

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The Anti-Corruption Research and Education Center (ACREC), Kyiv, Ukraine, and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) are pleased to invite you to the Fourth Annual Conference “Whistleblowers in Ukraine: Successes and Challenges,” which will be held on July 10, 2024, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Kyiv time.

The event aims to bring together activists, representatives of non-governmental organizations, judges, whistleblowers, authorized officials, employees of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP), international experts, political figures, and compliance managers to discuss opportunities for improving Ukraine’s legislation on whistleblowers. The event will feature three panel discussions and two workshops.

The event will be held online via the Zoom platform, where viewers will be able to actively participate in the conference. Please confirm your participation in the event by filling in this short form: https://forms.gle/DaF6T32Jd5GXMLQa7.

International Parliaments Day June 30.  On It and Everyday Work with Parliaments to Combat Corruption

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This Sunday June 30 is the International Day of Parliamentarism, dedicated to the celebration of parliaments around the world, and the work they do for democracy. Today’s Guest Post, by Franklin De Vrieze, Head of Practice Accountability, Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) and Kristen Sample, Director of Democratic Governance, National Democratic Institute (NDI), reminds that parliaments can and should play an important role in taming corruption.

From June 18 to 21 more than 2,000 civil society activists, journalists, government officials and private sector actors convened at the International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) in Vilnius, Lithuania, to discuss lessons learned and good practices for the fight against corruption.

The Conference was an excellent opportunity to highlight the stories of courageous activists and reformers from around the world.  Lithuania’s journey from Soviet subjugation to developed democracy in just a few short decades was an inspiring backdrop for discussions covering transparency, participation, and political integrity.

In an event that was otherwise impeccably conceived and executed, there was one blind spot: the limited discussion about and participation of legislators, an omission that is unfortunately far from the exception.

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Invaluable Guide to Fighting Corruption — at a Bargain Basement Price

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Mark Pyman and Paul Heywood’s Sector-Based Action Against Corruption: A Guide for Organizations and Professionals is not for everyone. If your goal is to improve a nation’s CPI score, attack grand corruption, or realize some other broadly stated, national level objective, stop here.

But if, as the authors explain, you “need to acquire competence in recognizing, analyzing and dealing with corruption” in a particular organization or process, and if you believe that “corruption Is as much a management issue as it is a political one,” download it immediately. (And thank whoever made this must-have book open-source.)

Pyman’s and Heywood’s careers both combine hands-on work helping government agencies and corporations curb corruption with serious engagement with the learning on corruption. And it shows. From the rigor they insist be brought to bear to specify identifiable, tractable corruption problems (corruption due to a non-meritocratic civil service is not one; conflict of interest in hiring is) to the disciplined approach they present for selecting the best measures for remedying them.

They break the process for “recognizing, analyzing, and dealing with corruption” into four steps labeled SFRA:

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Guest Post: From Revolution to Reform — Tracing Armenia’s Anti-Corruption Landscape

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It is now two decades plus since the fight against corruption emerged as a major issue. One that has been a particular challenge in nations still struggling to overcome the legacy of communism. Today’s Guest Post tracks recent progress Armenia, where voters in 2018 traded a deeply corrupt, semi authoritarian government for one promising both less corruption and more democracy. Its authors: Jeffrey Hallock, a PhD candidate at American University researching anti-corruption reform strategies, and a researcher at the Accountability Research Center utilizing open government data to analyze U.S. foreign funding trends, and Karine Ghahramanyan, a senior at the American University of Armenia pursuing a degree in Politics and Governance.

Armenia, a landlocked country of 2.8 million, sits in the middle of a region defined by political uncertainty. Six years after Nikol Pashinyan spearheaded Armenia’s Velvet Revolution with a promise to eradicate systemic corruption, many regard Prime Minister Pashinyan’s efforts as stalling. Although corruption has noticeably decreased since 2018 (here), the government’s initial emphasis on anti-corruption measures has been overtaken by urgent security considerations, its 2020 defeat by neighbor and long-time adversary Azerbaijan followed by unsettling developments in neighbors Georgia, Turkey, and Iran.

Armenia’s burgeoning democracy and recent reforms have helped strengthen its position amid broader volatility, contributing to economic growth and deepening relations with democratic allies. Yet the government is under mounting pressure to recommit to the principles of transparency and accountability that gave legitimacy to the 2018 revolution.

The Pashinyan administration offers lessons on how to capitalize on a window of opportunity to advance consequential anti-corruption gains, as well as insights on when the spark of the revolution fades into the reality of quotidian government reform.

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Towards Preventing Corruption During Ukraine’s Reconstruction: Bilingual Compilation of Ukrainian Procurement Laws

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Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has inflicted massive damage on the country’s infrastructure, a half trillion dollars and growing daily (here). While Ukraine’s government is just beginning the massive task of letting contracts for the reconstruction of schools, hospitals, and other public works destroyed by Russian bombs and artillery shells, reports are already circulating that corruption has infected the procurement of some large works.

Fighting corruption in procurement is about much more than tightening and strictly enforcing laws on what to buy from whom. Rules governing political contributions, gifts to officeholders, conflicts of interest and business practices that facilitate bid rigging are all part of the equation. But preventing and detecting corruption in government contracting starts with what the law does (or doesn’t) say about who makes purchasing decisions and how specifications are drawn, contractors selected, and performance assured.

The fight against corruption in Ukrainian reconstruction just got an important boost. An online data base of some 450 Ukrainian statutes and Cabinet decrees along with English summaries is now available here. Included is everything from the text of ProZorro, Ukraine’s award-winning e-procurement law to statutes on permitting and land use to detailed rules governing the construction of roads and ports. A dropdown menu allows users to search by topic – critical infrastructure, damaged property, public procurement, urban development – or hone in on a specific area such as construction standards, PPPs, or telecommunications.

The database will help frontline corruption fighters – in the Ukrainian government, civil society organizations, and those overseeing reconstruction funding – determine if procurement rules are being observed in a project. Vigorous competition for procurement contracts is perhaps the most important way to curb corruption. By offering a free guide to Ukrainian procurement law, the database reduces the cost to new or foreign firms of preparing bids, increasing the chances more companies will bid on a project and thus spurring competition.

The database is the result of a heroic, pro bono effort by a squad of multilingual lawyers at the international law firm Debevoise & Plimpton aided by Ukraine’s Institute for Legislative Ideas. It was the brainchild of Jennifer Widner, Princeton University professor and director of the University’s Innovations for Successful Societies, and Oksana Nesterenko, head of the Anticorruption Research & Education Centre at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. Both provided guidance and overall direction. Worth MacMurray, president and chief executive officer of the Coalition for Integrity, oversaw Debevoise’s work on behalf of ISS. The project is part of a larger effort by ISS and ACREC to prevent corruption during Ukrainian reconstruction.

Sri Lankan Bill on Proceeds of Crime and Corruption Damage Actions

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A distinguished group of Sri Lankan judges and lawyers recently released draft legislation to recover the proceeds of crime and compensate corruption victims. Prepared at the request of Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, enactment of such a bill is one of conditions of the $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund loan to stabilize the economy and restore economic growth.

While the proposed legislation exceeds the IMF requirement, providing for both criminal and non-conviction-based forfeiture of the proceeds of any crime, its overriding significance is it offers means for recovering the hundreds of millions if not billions of dollars corrupt officials have stolen from Sri Lankan citizens. The bill also establishes administrative procedures for compensating those injured by the corrupt act that generated the confiscated assets and granting anyone harmed by corruption the right to bring a civil action for damages.

The bill is accompanied by a clearly written report spelling out its provisions and explaining their rationale. A very nice diagram illistrates how the various freezing, seizure, and confiscation provisions will operate. Those in other nations struggling to write their own asset recovery or victim compensation legislation will find much of value in the Sri Lankans’ effort. (Text of bill with report and diagram here.)

At the same time, the bill is still in draft. Its authors welcome comments and critiques from Sri Lankans and international observers. Comments can be sent directly to the Ministry of Justice. Or GAB will be pleased to forward them to the appropriate personnel.

UPDATE. GAB just learned that Transparency International Sri Lanka has also posted a request for comments on the bill along with a brief explanation of the bill importance and the need for public input in English, Sinhalese, and Tamil here. The link includes an address to which comments can be sent.

What the Next UK Government Likely to do About Corruption

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If polls are to be believed, on July 4 the Labour Party will take control of the government of the (still!) United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Professor Robert Barrington (Centre for the Study of Corruption) was one of the architects of the Cameron government’s Anti-Corruption Summit in 2016. Below he reviews a recent speech from Labour MP David Lammy, almost certain to be Foreign Secretary in a Labour government. Given the UK’s role in the international fight against corruption, Lammy’s remarks will be of interest to more than just UK voters.

Somewhat lost in the noise of the UK’s general election announcement was a major speech by Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy at the think-tank IPPR.  It was reported here in the Financial Times, but hardly anywhere else.  As Mr Lammy is likely to be the UK’s new Foreign Secretary on July 5th, anti-corruption experts should be paying close attention to what he said.  Moreover, this is the most significant speech made to date by a senior politician in the opposition party, and so gives the best clue as to what might happen should they win the election.  This analysis contains lengthy quotations, as the speech does not seem yet to be easily accessible.

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Guest Post: Watching Watch Wearers: More on Thailand’s Watchgate Case

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GAB welcome back Craig R. Arndt, an American lawyer now living in Bangkok. Craig has advised a variety of clients on corruption-related matters and represented corruption victims in damage actions. Below he offers a coda to Government Leaders Should Watch Who Watches Them Wearing Their Pricey Watches

In 2018 the Thai public was mesmerized by a photo showing retired General and then Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan wearing a luxury watch. Activists soon found other photos of him sporting a variety of watches together worth $1.5 million. General Prawit was widely mocked for his explanation that they had been loaned to him by a wealthy now deceased friend and that he was not required to report them on his asset declaration form (here and here).

Thailand’s National Anticorruption Commission (NACC) did investigate the non-disclosure claim, it found nothing wrong. Prawit continued his political career, unfazed and unaffected by what had been short-lived damage to his reputation (here). He was the candidate for Prime Minister for the current ruling party in the recent election. Although that party split, his party still gained 40 seats in the face of a resounding defeat of the generals and their allies (here).

Although the NACC concluded that Prawit failure to report the watch collection did violated the asset disclosure law lot violated the law requriwas willing The agency, however, offered no justification for letting Prawit off the hook (here). Thailand’s increasingly assertive civil society was not ready to let the matter drop.

Political Activist Veera Somkwamkid asked the Administrative Court to order NACC to disclose its findings in the Prawit case. The first level administrative court agreed, and April 2023 the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC) upheld the decision and ordered full disclosure of the NACC Prawit files (here).

The SAC’s decision in the Prawit case does not set a precedent under Thai law. The NACC can thus refuse to disclose its reasoning in future cases, meaning those seeking their disclosure will have to tread the path Veera took in Prawit’s. It may a be a slow and treacherous one, but the NACC and Thai officials are on notice it’s a path determined civil society activists are willing to take.

Prawit may still find it easy to find the time of day given his glitzy watch collection, but in Thailand time may be running short on politicians of his ilk

Government Leaders Should Watch Who Watches Them Wearing Their Pricey Watches

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Peruvian President Dina Boluarte is the latest government leader to be ensnarled in a corruption flap thanks to a penchant for high-end time pieces. Before her it was the then-Prime Minister of Croatia Ivo Sanader (here) and after him the then-Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan (here).

Like them, she apparently believed wearing a different expensive watch on different occasions was part of the job of running a country. And like them, her luxurious taste was caught on camera. Photographs show her at one or another function modeling watches that in toto cost more than $500,000.

From the collection of Peruvian President Dina Boluarte. Source: Presidential Flickr account

Just as with the Sanader and Wongsuwan flaps, photos of Boluarte’s watch collection prompted uncomfortable questions: Why didn’t she report the collection on her income and asset declaration form as required by law? And how could she, like them a longtime government employee, afford such a pricey collection?

Despite Sanader and Wongsuwan’s lame explanations –“I didn’t know I had to report them.” “Oh wait, they aren’t mine, I just borrowed them.” – the exposure of their unexplainable wealth cost them nothing more than civil society reproaches. Whether Peruvian authorities will accept Boluarte’s similarly flimsy explanations remains at this writing to be seen.

Beyond the reminder that some government leaders are incurably venal, these serial watchgates offer lessons. For leaders enamored of fancy timepieces, report them on your income and asset disclosure form or keep them up your sleeve when a photographer is nearby. For anticorruption agencies, there is a less flippant, more important lesson.

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