Attitudes on corruption are changing. As recently as ten years ago, corruption was only whispered about. Today there are signs of growing intolerance toward corruption and more and more politicians and chief executives are being tried and convicted.
Countries all over the world demonstrated their intolerance for corruption last week in a spectrum of manifestations. Thousands took to the streets in Indonesia as students, NGOs, farmers, fishermen, and workers rallied on December 9 marking International Anti-corruption Day. Representing a wide cross section of Indonesian society, protesters demanded that the government take immediate action to end long-time political corruption problems in Indonesia.
Bangladesh observed this year’s International Anti-corruption Day with a series of activities to encourage people to speak out and demand action against corruption. Thousands of anti-corruption activists mobilized in rallies, human chains, debate- and essay-competitions, signature campaigns, cultural events, cartoon exhibitions, and theatre shows. In Beirut, CIPE partner the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) organized a “Run for Transparency” where participants even ran 42 km for transparency and against corruption, marking also the 10th Anniversary of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention. That’s a lot of kilometers, but there’s still a long way to go to fight corruption.
Corruption feeds ongoing political and economic failures in many developing countries by impeding market development, driving away investment, increasing the cost of doing business, and eroding the legitimacy of the law.
The need for an increased emphasis on fighting corruption is paramount as worldwide corruption grows and paralyzes development efforts around the world. CIPE’s anti-corruption projects address a fundamental aspect of developing democracies. When democracies begin to liberalize their economies, the mixture of low government wages and economic stagnation makes public and other officials particularly vulnerable to corrupt practices.
CIPE’s projects in Azerbaijan, Serbia and Montenegro, and elsewhere attest that corruption is rooted in the complex and frequently changing patterns of laws and regulations. Indeed, corruption thrives in markets where legal structures are vague and the rule of law is not strictly enforced. A major breeding ground for corruption is in the area of governmental applications of laws and regulations including tax rules, customs and currency regulations, labor law, and health and safety laws.
In Lebanon, CIPE is helping to tackle sources of corruption by working with small- and medium-sized businesses – those often hit the hardest by corrupt practices. Addressing the supply side of corruption, CIPE is working with LTA to increase its capacity to organize a collective effort to raise awareness of practical means by which businesspeople can respond to bribe-seeking.
CIPE is also working with LTA to engender respect for ethical conduct amongst small- and medium-sized businesses. The program created a multi-stakeholder Anti-Bribery Network, which serves as a platform through which program activities are implemented. This program is significant not only for its intended outcomes, but also for its unprecedented implementation process – the Anti-Bribery Network marks the first time that groups are working together in a multi-stakeholder manner to address the pervasive issue of corruption. Indeed, this is also the first time that multiple groups are working collectively in a coordinated fashion towards a common goal of a National Anti-Corruption Strategy for Lebanon–an example that other countries in the region are hard-pressed to follow.
Published Date: December 18, 2009