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Transparency International Annual Membership Meeting
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Transparency International. |
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Transparency International (TI) holds its Annual Members Meeting (AMM) from 25-29 October in Bali, Indonesia, bringing together more than 200 delegates from over 90 national chapters around the world to exchange information, opinions and experience.
Transparency International has a unique organisational structure that allows it to maintain a strong connection to the issues at the local level, and that earns it a seat at the table of high level international conferences. More on TI’s internal structure below.
The AMM, hosted by TI's national chapter in Indonesia, will feature discussion on thematic issues such as poverty and development, political corruption, revenue transparency, civil society monitoring, corruption in defence and corruption in the judiciary as well as TI internal governance issues.
A range of events stretching over the five days will provide opportunities for the membership and regional departments, as well as smaller committees and groups with specialised interests to convene.
This In Focus will be regularly updated with the latest from the AMM in Bali – please continue to check in for new information, developments, and photos of the TI movement.
Special focus: asset recovery
On Thursday 25 October, TI Indonesia will host an expert meeting on asset recovery and UNCAC monitoring. This will be followed by a plenary panel discussion on Saturday 27 October, entitled “How to get it back: the challenges of Asset Recovery”. The plenary will be chaired by TI Vice Chair Akere Muna, and will be composed of both TI internal and external experts. The plenary discussion will provide an opportunity to present the outcome of the TI Indonesia expert meeting from earlier in the week.
Read the Statement by Huguette Labelle on the Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative, 17 September 2007.
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President of Indonesia
Huguette Labelle, |
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A short tale of asset recovery in Indonesia |
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Indonesia’s former President Suharto has been topping news headlines in recent weeks. But there is another recovery story from this country – one that shows how much more easily corrupt funds cross borders on their way out. This story is one familiar to Indonesians, but not on the international radar. The story begins with the East Asian Financial Crisis, where between 1997 and 1999 the central bank of Indonesia extended US $16 billion in liquidity assistance to help protect private banks from the massive withdrawal of foreign capital from the country. Read more in the Transparency Watch – TI’s monthly electronic newsletter at: www.transparency.org/newsletter |
Thematic discussion on TI initiatives in 2007
Some of the key issues to be discussed at the AMM build upon initiatives undertaken by TI and its chapters around the world throughout 2007. These include poverty and development, political corruption, revenue transparency, civil society monitoring, corruption in defence and corruption in the judiciary.
Also, with a view ahead to the Conference of States Parties coming up in January 2008, monitoring and advancing the goals of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) will be a central topic of discussion.
The AMM provides an opportunity for the TI movement to share experiences and best practice, to look at what has been done and to plan next steps.
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Preventing corruption in development and poverty reduction
TI views the level of poverty in the world as unacceptably high. Corruption aggravates poverty. Household surveys in developing countries reveal that corruption has a significant and detrimental impact on the lives of the poor. For a low-income household, the bribe randomly extorted by a police officer may mean that families cannot afford to pay school fees for their children or to buy goods to maintain their small business and source of income. In 2007, Transparency International released a Policy Paper on poverty, aid and corruption, to help ensure that the development assistance supporting millions in their daily struggle to survive is not diverted through corruption. |
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Transparency and standards for party and campaign funding - CRINIS |
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Money is vital to the proper functioning of democratic systems. It enables citizens to organise political parties, helps to train new leaders and is used to present government proposals in election races. Without money in politics, those in power would have an advantage over potential candidates, thereby minimising the chances for another party to take office. TI’s Crinis project is based on the acceptance of money as a necessary element for democracies and parties to run smoothly so long as financing is transparent, properly accounted for, publicly disclosed and subject to effective governmental and social oversight mechanisms. A study was carried out in eight Latin American countries showing deep flaws in the standards and practices governing transparency and accountability in party and campaign finances.
The goal of the Crinis project is to increase public trust in democracy and political parties by promoting transparency and accountability in political financing, both in laws and in practice. Crinis is a joint project from Transparency International and the Carter Center to promote transparency and accountability in political financing in Latin America. The full report is available on TI’s website in Spanish.
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Promoting Revenue Transparency Project The Promoting Revenue Transparency Project (PRT Project) is run by Transparency International in partnership with the Revenue Watch Institute, and builds on the work of the Save the Children UK ‘Beyond the Rhetoric’ report from 2005. The Promoting Revenue Transparency Project seeks to raise awareness in both government and the private sector of the various steps required for revenue transparency in the extractive industries to be achieved, sustained and mainstreamed. In order to achieve this goal, a series of reports will be produced, the first of which is the Companies Report, which focusses on the revenue transparency policies and practices of 42 oil and gas companies. The year-long process of research and engagement with the companies concerned is now drawing to a close and the report is in the pre-publication stage.
The PRT Project is currently also working on the initial stages of a Host Governments Report (HGR) which will focus on government transparency regarding extractive industry revenues in countries where extraction is taking place. It is designed to create local ownership and to promote engagement and participation of local stakeholders, particularly governments. Additionally, a feasibility study on extending the existing reports to cover the mining industry will be undertaken. |
Civil society monitoring of the implementation of public projects
Increasing the transparency and integrity in public contracting has long been a priority of Transparency International. National chapters have been promoting initiatives ranging from advocacy for legal reforms to the application of risk maps and assessment indicators to public contracting systems. In 2007, training workshops and seminars for public officials and civil society on public contracting issues have been held.
Please visit TI’s Public Contracting pages for more information.
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Corruption in defence |
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Global defence is big business, with expenditures exceeding more than US $1 trillion. Yet the defence establishment has historically been one of the least open of any government organisation. The secrecy that necessarily veils some defence activities often extends more widely than can be justified, making the sector particularly vulnerable to the abuse of corruption. Working with the military, governments and civil society can help to build the integrity of the system, promote accountability and increase the transparency of dealings. On behalf of Transparency International, TI (UK) is leading a global project in the defence and security sector, working with the major stakeholders – exporting governments, importing governments, companies and other organisations (NATO, EU, World Bank, and others) – to reduce corruption in the defence sector, and particularly in defence procurement. TI and TI-UK have outlined the issues and actors in the recently released Working Paper: Addressing Corruption and Building Integrity in Defence Establishments, and on the project website (http://www.defenceagainstcorruption.org).
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A corrupt judiciary erodes the international community’s ability to prosecute transnational crime and inhibits access to justice and redress for human rights violations. It undermines economic growth by damaging the trust of the investment community, and impedes efforts to reduce poverty. Corruption in the judiciary includes any inappropriate influence on the impartiality of judicial proceedings and judgements and can extend to the bribing of judges for favourable decisions, or no decision at all.
Transparency International’s (TI) Global Corruption Barometer 2006 (GCB), released in December 2006, explores how corruption affects the lives of citizens, by assessing both the form and extent of corruption and the sectors of society they perceive to be most corrupt. In 2006, the legal system/judiciary was identified as the most corrupt sector and the third most common recipient of bribes. Worldwide, eight percent of GCB respondents who had contact with the legal system/judiciary in 2006 paid a bribe.
The focus of the Global Corruption Report (GCR) 2007 was the on judicial systems. For more information on the please see: www.transparency.org/gcr or view the In Focus Special on the GCR.
Judicial advocacy working group
The Judicial Advocacy Working Group continues its efforts to develop advocacy strategies to tackle corruption in judicial systems. In October, members of the group made presentations at the International Bar Association and the Central European and Eurasian Law Initiative (CEELI) Institute. In addition, the group is actively promoting its Combating Corruption in Judicial Systems Advocacy Toolkit, and hopes to support national chapters that are currently working on judicial issues. The working group is currently developing a website which will centralise the legal and judicial reform efforts within the TI movement. For more information, please email the Judicial Advocacy Working Group.
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Corruption is an international problem. Be it cross-border bribery or stashing of corruption proceeds off-shore, the issue requires an international solution, within a framework of state obligations. Comprehensive in scope, the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) obliges the States Parties to implement a wide and detailed range of anti-corruption measures affecting their laws, practices, and institutions. These measures aim to promote the prevention, detection and sanctioning of corruption, as well as inducing cooperation between State Parties on these matters. This year, the number of signatories to the Convention has grown to 140, while the number of UNCAC ratifications increased to 103. A critical part of TI’s work is promoting the ratification, implementation and monitoring of the UNCAC. In preparation for the upcoming Conference of States Parties, TI-S prepared the Recommendations on the UNCAC Review Mechanism. The paper has been submitted to the UNCAC Conference of States Parties Working Group on Review, and is currently being circulated widely. The International Conventions Programme has also continued its work on monitoring the implementation of other conventions, helping build a broad civil society coalition in support of the UNCAC, and assisting regional departments and national chapters in their work on the treaties. In Focus UNCAC Africa
A special UNCAC In Focus came out in 2007 focusing on the implementation of anti-corruption laws in nine African countries: Algeria, Burundi, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Togo, and Uganda. The studies found that the nine countries have legal gaps with respect to requirements established by the international anti-corruption instruments most relevant for the region: the UN Convention against Corruption (2003) and the African Union Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption and Related Offences (2003). |
TI Indonesia
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Rizal Malik, Executive Director of TI Indonesia, reports on important national anti-corruption milestones: corruption is now considered a criminal offence, new anti-corruption laws penalise both bribery and conflicts of interest and the KPK (a national anti-corruption agency) now has the power to prosecute, making the apprehension and indictment of offenders more simple.
One area of high priority for the chapter is continuing work to ensure transparency in the post-Tsunami reconstruction process, which is planned to continue until 2009. The chapter also puts a high value on developing and expanding corruption measurement. In 2006, TI Indonesia launched a domestic Corruption Perceptions Index which ranked 32 cities. The index results came from a public opinion survey of approximately 1825 respondents. The index is planned as a tool to facilitate UNCAC monitoring in 2008.
For more information about the chapter, please visit their website at: www.ti.or.id/en
More information on corruption in Indonesia
Handbook: Curbing Corruption in Public Procurement
In January 2007, Transparency International published the Handbook for Curbing Corruption in Public Procurement. Featuring case studies from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Pakistan, the Handbook provides an overview of the problem of corruption in public contracting and offers practical suggestions for action. Intended as a hands-on guide for civil society and local governments, the Handbook is also a useful resource for those in the private sector working in procurement, such as bidders, suppliers, contractors and consultants. It is also available in Bahasa. For more information and to download the publication, please see: www.transparency.org/regional_pages/asia_pacific#infocus
How TI is governed
The Transparency International movement consists of many elements that make it a strong coalition to fight corruption. A world-wide network of national chapters works together with the International Secretariat, the Board of Directors, senior advisors and other volunteers.
Transparency International is governed by its Charter. Its ultimate decision-making body is the Annual Membership Meeting bringing together accredited national chapters and individual members, and elects the Board of Directors. This year, two new Board members are going to be elected.
More information at: www.transparency.org/about_us/organisation
AMM resolutions
