Statement on behalf of Transparency International by Peter
Rooke, member
of the Advisory Council
Conference for Signing the U.N. Convention Against Corruption
Mérida
Transparency International welcomes this opportunity to address
this historic conference for signing the first truly global anti-corruption
instrument.
It is fitting that the opening of the conference will in future
be celebrated as International Anti-Corruption Day.
TI congratulates the Ad Hoc Committee and the Secretariat on
their achievement in successfully concluding negotiations for the United Nations
Convention Against Corruption in record time.
Eradicating corruption is first and foremost the responsibility
of states but the Convention recognizes the vital role for civil society and
the business sector.
TI is a global non government movement with autonomous national
chapters in some 90 countries in every continent and at every level of development.
We work to build national, regional and global coalitions with government,
business and other stakeholders. We do not investigate or expose cases of
corruption and we are independent and politically non-partisan.
TI celebrates its 10th anniversary old this year. We have seen,
and been party to, a dramatic increase in awareness of corruption and of the
pressing need to curb it.
As our Chairman, Peter Eigen, has
said:
"Corruption respects no national boundaries. It deepens
poverty by distorting political, economic and social life. Transparency International
was born from the experience of people who witnessed at first hand the real
threat to human life posed by corruption."
As awareness has grown, so have expectations. The Mérida Convention
raises these expectations at a global level.
The Convention represents the culmination of the second phase
of the global fight against corruption.
The first phase was to raise awareness.
The second has set in place a global framework of international
instruments.
The third - and most challenging - phase is to meet the expectations
of the world's citizens, by implementing and applying these instruments so
that real tangible progress is seen in reducing corruption worldwide. While
some countries at all levels of development have successfully tackled corruption,
in many other countries the task has barely begun.
The Convention is wide-ranging in its coverage but not uniform
in treatment of different issues. TI regrets that transparency in funding
the political process and private sector corruption are not addressed by mandatory
provisions.
On the other hand, we applaud the ground-breaking provisions
on asset recovery. If effectively implemented, these will allay suspicions
that financial institutions in the North facilitate the looting of resources
from the South. We also welcome the extensive provisions for international
cooperation on law enforcement, extradition and mutual legal assistance.
That was phase two. We are firmly in the third phase of the
fight against corruption, that of implementation.
TI strongly urges rapid ratification and effective implementation
of the Convention by as many states as possible. We agree with President Fox
that, with resolute political will, the 30 ratifications needed for entry
into force are achievable by the first anniversary of this conference. This
would send the strongest possible signal that governments intend to meet the
raised expectations I mentioned. It is also imperative that a great majority
of states become parties to the Convention in order maximize its effectiveness
as a vehicle for international cooperation.
Ratification must be accompanied by effective implementation
and by application of the Convention through domestic laws giving effect to
its provisions. We expect that most states will go far beyond the mandatory
provisions of the Convention by implementing many of the optional provisions
too.
We welcome the Convention's recognition of the need for sharing
information and for technical assistance when requested. Many states will need help to assess and meet the requirements of the Convention.
TI and our national chapters stand ready to contribute to this process.
TI is a strong advocate of effective follow up mechanisms in
international instruments. We note that the Conference of States Parties will
decide on this important issue. The negotiations showed what a challenge this
will be. Clearly, monitoring mechanisms used in other instruments are unlikely
to be appropriate given the likely number of parties and the very broad scope
of the Convention. TI intends to contribute to the process which should start
immediately to look at a wide range of options with a view to encouraging
a consensus around a mechanism which is neither too intrusive or resource
intensive nor too weak to be effective.
While we can and should all applaud the great achievement the
Convention represents, it is clear that even bigger challenges lie ahead.