Doha: A handful of countries are responsible for the failure of a crucial meeting to agree to an effective mechanism that would give a global anti-corruption treaty real power, said Christian Aid, Global Witness, and Tearfund today.
China, Russia and Egypt are among the governments who have weakened proposals for a peer review mechanism designed to ensure signatory countries to the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) live up to their commitments.
”A huge opportunity to turn rhetoric into action has been lost due to the irresponsible behaviour of an unlikely coalition of blocking countries”, said George Boden of Global Witness.
”Corruption is one of the main reasons that countries remain poor, as government revenues disappear into the pockets of corrupt officials, whilst the poorest are denied access to healthcare, education and a decent living,” said Laura Webster of Tearfund.
“This fudged agreement begs the question: what do governments have to hide?” said Adele Poskitt from Christian Aid.
The UNCAC includes a package of measures to tackle corrupt practices, including bribery, embezzlement and money laundering. But without a strong peer review mechanism, there is no way to enforce compliance.
This week’s meeting was the opportunity to agree that mechanism. But, in the face of opposition from a number of governments, countries have settled on a weak compromise that does not ensure transparency or accountability.
Under the agreed mechanism, review teams will have to seek permission if they want to make a country visit or talk to those outside of government. The participation of civil society is not guaranteed. Even other UNCAC members will not have access to the full findings of the review teams. A weak review mechanism will mean that corruption will continue to blight the lives of people in poverty.
“This represents a significant setback for UNCAC. The failure to agree to a transparent and inclusive review mechanism will result in a huge loss of momentum for global anti-corruption efforts,” said Webster.
“Without effective anti-corruption safeguards, the funding urgently needed to tackle development issues, such as climate change, may be siphoned off not reaching those most in need,” said Poskitt.
“Shamefully, a handful of countries have rendered UNCAC toothless,” said Boden.
Corruption costs lives, causes misery, destroys well being and blights the hopes of billions.
Those who have blocked progress should have this on the consciences.
If they have one.
Newly agreed UN corruption deal panned as 'toothless' (AFP)
DOHA — Conference delegates meeting in the Qatari capital on Friday backed a tightening of the United Nations anti-corruption programme but lobby groups immediately slammed the deal as a lost opportunity.
"The sword of justice just got sharper," Qatar Attorney General Ali al-Marri, the conference chairman, said after countries approved a mechanism to monitor implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).
But Christian Aid, Global Witness, and Tearfund said in a joint statement: " China , Russia and Egypt are among governments who have weakened proposals to ensure signatory countries live up to their commitments."
"Shamefully, a handful of countries have rendered UNCAC toothless. This fudged agreement begs the question: what do governments have to hide?" Christian Aid's Adele Poskitt said in the statement.
Antonio Maria Costa, head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, insisted: "This agreement will not end corruption, but it will enable us to measure and fight it."
The legally binding convention, launched in 2003, obliges the 142 signatory countries to prevent and criminalise corruption, promote international cooperation, recover stolen assets, and improve technical assistance and information exchange.
Under the new mechanism, all countries will be monitored every five years to see how they are living up to their obligations.
"From now on, states will be judged by the actions that they take against corruption, not the promises they make," Costa said.
The country reports will identify gaps in national anti-corruption laws and practices. Strengths and weaknesses will also be revealed by a self-assessment checklist, he said.
Dimitri Vlassis, head of the corruption and economic crime section in Costa's office, told AFP the agreement was approved by the 121 countries represented in Doha but "some clauses are optional."
For some countries, "It is a question of national sovereignty" and states cannot be forced to accept inspections, which the United States and European Union had advocated.
George Boden of Global Witness said: "A huge opportunity to turn rhetoric into action has been lost due to the irresponsible behaviour of an unlikely coalition of blocking countries."
"Corruption is one of the main reasons that countries remain poor, as government revenues disappear into the pockets of corrupt officials, whilst the poorest are denied access to health care, education and a decent living," said Laura Webster of Tearfund, according to the campaign groups' statement.
Without a strong peer review mechanism, there is no way to enforce compliance with UNCAC's measures to tackle corrupt practices, the critics said.
"This week?s meeting was the opportunity to agree that mechanism. But, in the face of opposition from a number of governments, countries have settled on a weak compromise that does not ensure transparency or accountability," their statement said.
"Even other UNCAC members will not have access to the full findings of the review teams. A weak review mechanism will mean that corruption will continue to blight the lives of people in poverty," the groups said.
Webster said: "This represents a significant setback for UNCAC. The failure to agree to a transparent and inclusive review mechanism will result in a huge loss of momentum for global anti-corruption efforts."
"Without effective anti-corruption safeguards, the funding urgently needed to tackle development issues, such as climate change, may be siphoned off, not reaching those most in need," Poskitt added.
UNCAC signatory countries are not scheduled to meet again until a conference in Morocco in 2011.
UN plans global anti-corruption reviews (AP)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A U.N. official says an agreement has been reached for sweeping anti-corruption reviews on how countries account for their public assets.
The pact comes after talks in Qatar 's capital, Doha , between the United Nations, World Bank and watchdog groups. The head of the U.N. office leading anti-corruption efforts, Antonio Maria Costa, calls it a landmark decision to track and return public funds looted by political leaders and others.
The accord opens the way for U.N. inspectors and non-governmental groups to probe more than 140 countries that have signed the U.N. anti-corruption convention.But it allows countries to block the outside visits and offer their own assessments. Activist groups complain this is too weak.
