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THE SIXTH GLOBAL FORUM ON FIGHTING
CORRUPTION AND SAFEGUARDING INTEGRITY
DOHA, QATAR
7-8 NOVEMBER 2009
DOHA STATEMENT
“Strength in Unity: Public-Private
Partnerships
to Fight Corruption”
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We, Ministers and senior officials
from Governments, representatives from international organizations,
business leaders and civil society participants, attending the Sixth Global Forum on Fighting
Corruption and Safeguarding Integrity, held in Doha, Qatar, from 7-8
November 2009, increasingly committed to combat corruption and safeguard
integrity at every level of society and to strengthen international
cooperation:
Express
our most sincere gratitude to His Royal
Highness
Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa
Al-Thani and
H.E Dr. Ali Bin
Fetais Al-Marri, Attorney
General, and the Government of Qatar, for hosting a successful Global
Forum. We also express our appreciation to the previous host
governments of the Global Forum, as it traversed the world -- the United
States (Washington D.C., 1999), the Netherlands (The Hague, 2001); the
Republic of Korea (Seoul, 2003), Brazil (Brasilia, 2005), and South
Africa (Johannesburg, 2007) – for their joint efforts to mobilize the
world community against corruption;
Since
the convening of the First Global Forum on Fighting
Corruption and Safeguarding Integrity in Washington, D.C., in 1999,
the Global Forum process has helped bring the international
community together to renew its commitment to the prevention and
fight against corruption; promote responsible governance and
enhance integrity; share good practices; discuss the latest trends
related to good governance and anticorruption; explore novel
approaches to prevent, investigate and prosecute corruption;
reinforce international cooperation; and to highlight partnerships
with the nongovernmental sector. Over the past 10 years, the Global
Forum has provided the political impetus to break down barriers for
governments, international organizations, and non-governmental
groups to strengthen cooperation and freely discuss corruption and
related law enforcement and good governance issues. The spirit of
the Global Forum, as noted by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore
during the opening keynote address in 1999, remains important today:
“no nation is immune from corruption; no nation has a monopoly on
virtue or has the right to lecture any other. To effectively combat
corruption globally, no nation could seal itself off from the impact
of corruption beyond its border and must work with every other
nation to fight corruption wherever it is in the world.”
THE DESTRUCTIVE IMPACT OF
CORRUPTION
Recognize
that corruption is a complex economic,
political and social challenge that threatens democracy, sustainable
development, the rule of law, the welfare and health of our citizens, a
clean environment, and global security across both developed and
developing countries, whose corrosive influence extends to the spread of
transnational organized crime, terrorism, and other illicit areas that
pose threats to the security, good order and well-being of many of our
societies;
Are aware
that corruption impedes development,
endangers human rights, impedes the democratic process and undermines
good corporate governance. Corruption’s impact is most profoundly felt
by the poor as it denies them access to funds and resources allocated
for their benefit and necessary for a brighter future, including the
right to participate fully in political and economic processes, making
it difficult for governments to build just, fair, and equitable
societies;
Are
cognizant
that the
prevention of corruption is a key tool in combating emerging
transnational criminal threats and illicit networks. Today, criminals
imperil the function and legitimacy of the state when they harness
public institutions to facilitate their illicit activities and create a
culture of impunity. In the most extreme cases, they subvert and
undermine state functions.
To gain an advantage in our battle against
such transnational criminal threats, we must root out corruption at
every level of government involving the public trust – particularly in
the security, law enforcement and criminal justice sectors, as well as
in the economic, financial and business sectors – in full
partnership with non-governmental and civil society organizations, so as
to establish a culture of legality and reinforce the rule of law in our
societies;
Urge
the global community to redouble efforts
to promote national integrity systems and strategies that combat all
forms of corruption, and the laundering of illicit proceeds;
At
the opening of Global Forum V in Johannesburg, South Africa,
in 2007, President Thabo Mbeki underscored the urgency for
the international community to deal with the “problem of corruption,
which obstructs the achievement of the important objective we all
share, the objective of liberating billions of human beings from the
scourge of poverty. The theme that informs the work of this
conference, fighting corruption and safeguarding integrity’,
correctly presumes our ability as political leaders, business
leaders, civil society, public intellectuals and academics, and
others, to identify the root causes of corruption and accordingly
work out the most effective ways and means to combat it. All of us
are agreed about the negative consequences of corruption on the
lives of especially the ordinary people but also all the citizens of
our countries. We are equally agreed that for corruption to occur
there must also exist mutual agreement and collusion between the
corruptor and the corrupted. Indeed, both the corruptor and the
corrupted would, as a matter of principle, agree to subject their
souls to the dictates of graft, illegally to line their pockets
against the interests of the people to whom the stolen resources are
due. . . . We know of many examples where corruption robs a large
section of humanity of their right to homes, food, transport,
education, health, clean water, and many other essential services.”
President Mbeki further noted that corruption “emasculates
development and democracy and undermines the fight against poverty
by diverting key resources away from programs designed to improve
the quality of life especially of the poor, globally. . . . We have
an obligation properly to understand and to fight corruption in all
its forms and manifestations, as we seek to create a new world order
that will be responsive to the needs and aspirations of the poor
billions we represent. . . . Accordingly, we need to seize the
opportunity provided by this Global Forum constructively to
strengthen the foundation for carrying out our historic task to rid
our world of the ravages of poverty, disease and underdevelopment.”
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AND
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR FRAMEWORKS FOR DETERRENCE
Voice our concern
that corruption involving officials from the private and public sectors
is a grave and corrosive abuse of power that destabilizes the social
fabric of communities;
Acknowledge
that corruption has evolved into a transnational and trans-sectoral
phenomenon, and that a holistic approach is needed to address it, which
not only involves the public sector but also the private sector, civil
society, academia, the media, and relevant international organizations;
Encourage
business leaders and businesses to adopt and enforce anti-bribery
compliance policies and programs, conduct their enterprises in a more
ethical manner internationally, and move toward independent verification
processes, to enhance the credibility of the systems;
Recommend that
steps be taken to provide incentives to business to cooperate with law
enforcement authorities, such as measures by governments to mitigate
penalties for such cooperation or for adopting such programs;
At
the opening plenary of Global Forum III in Seoul, South Korea, in
2003, Minister of Justice Kang Kum-Sil underscored how the
Global Forum process had become an indispensable tool to mobilize
attention to the causes of corruption, develop guiding principles to
fight it, and to exchange effective methodologies. Minister
Kang also noted that corruption in the era of globalization
threatened many of the international community’s shared interests in
security, economic prosperity, democracy and sustainable
development: “It has become increasingly apparent that issues such
as money laundering, organized crime, and terrorism are deeply
interrelated to corruption. The results of these vices have shown
the world how harmful they can be – not just to individual countries
but to the global community as well. Corruption in the private
sector is also a serious problem that has emerged as an urgent
matter to address. Several corruption cases in the private sector,
such as the series of accounting scandals that . . .have[had] a
negative impact on the world economy. To eradicate corruption at
the national level, the public sector, private sector, and civil
society have to actively interplay their respective roles.”
Note with concern
the increasingly transnational nature of
corruption and agree
on the need for sharing of good
practices in formal and informal cooperation arrangements for the
prevention, investigation and prosecution of corruption cases;
Also agree
to implement and enforce laws against transnational bribery of foreign
officials, including those promulgated to implement the provisions of
the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and the OECD
Convention on the Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International
Business Transactions;
Further recognize
that integrity is a core prerequisite to a secure and clean
international supply chain, that corruption undermines international
trade and development, and that collaboration in preventing and fighting
corruption by all parties is crucial;
STRENGTHENING ANTICORRUPTION
AUTHORITIES
Are aware,
in line with the UNCAC and other international treaties, of the
important role that specialized anticorruption institutions can play in
the prevention and control of corruption, as well as in establishing and
monitoring sound anticorruption strategies and policies;
Express concern
over instances in which anticorruption authorities are being weakened
and even threatened;
Urge
the international community to remain vigilant against attempts to
undermine the role and functions of anticorruption authorities;
Encourage
governments diligently to take all
necessary measures to ensure that anticorruption authorities can
effectively contribute to the prevention, detection, investigation, and
prosecution of corruption and related offences, as well as to the
identification, tracing, seizure, confiscation, and return of the
proceeds of corruption, within their respective mandates;
At
Global Forum II, held in The Hague in 2001, chaired by H.E.
Benk Korthais, Minister of Justice of the Netherlands, delegates
welcomed the United Nations General Assembly’s decision to begin the
elaboration and negotiation of an effective international legal
instrument against corruption, which lead to the UNCAC. Minister
Korthais further elaborated on the scope of Global Forum II during
his opening remarks: “I believe that we have established a
balance here by paying attention to everyone’s role [in the fight
against corruption]. The various branches of Government, but also
civil society, the private sector and the media have a role to
play. In this respect, I want to emphasize that I fully respect the
demands from especially the developing countries that the rest of
the world must help them in fighting corruption: when companies
based in the industrialized world are actively involved in
corruption, they should be punished, even if they are engaged in
bribery of foreign officials. When former dictators use the banks
located in the big financial centres to hide the resources stolen
from their country of origin, we should find the right way to help
to repatriat[e] such embezzled funds. The key word here is close
international cooperation based on clear criteria.”
PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND A
CULTURE OF INTEGRITY
At
Global Forum IV in Brasilia, Brazil in 2005, Waldir Pires,
Minister of Control and Transparency, gave the following
inspirational message: “In a country like ours, corruption
annihilates the lives of children – stealing their school lunches –
or kills the oldest among us by blocking access to medications that
are diverted from public health services. We must combat corruption
with courage. Corruption, after all, does not respect borders, nor
does it distinguish between rich or poor nations. We have to
confront it, therefore, shoulder to shoulder, until we can declare
victory in the battle for democracy and human civilization. For
there cannot be democracy without citizenship. There cannot be
citizenship without respect for fundamental social rights for the
existence of the human person. Democracy means the inclusion of all
people in our world today. It is my hope that the Global Forum
will continue to serve as a privileged venue where we can reflect on
our common problems and forge paths for solving them together, on
behalf of proper administrative conduct, of ethics. Specifically,
the ethics that solidify the human condition, that see in the human
person more than simply the objective of building a human
civilization, but rather the end, the essence of this effort”.
Encourage
leaders at all levels of society to
strengthen their will and resolve against corruption, and to support
public campaigns that mobilize all segments of society to eradicate
corruption in all of its forms and manifestations;
Reaffirm
the need to establish and nurture a
culture of integrity among citizens, public officials and private sector
officials;
Point out
the benefits of anticorruption educational initiatives to foster a
culture of integrity, including through programs for youth, through
well-constructed long-term strategies, the mainstreaming of ethics and
anticorruption in professional and post-graduate programs, and the
provision of specialized training for practitioners;
Highlight
the crucial role of the media to both
accurately inform and educate the public as well as to expose
corruption;
Stress
the fundamental importance of
strengthening the integrity and independence of the judiciary and
investigative and prosecution services; as well as the importance of the
vigilance of parliaments in the fight against corruption, including by
greater a commitment to conflicts of interest and abuse of power;
PREVENTION OF CORRUPTION
Are aware
that priority should be given to the adoption of broad prevention
measures, which are crucial to any comprehensive strategy for fighting
corruption;
Recognize
Chapter II of UNCAC as providing a
strong model for the types of measures that governments should take to
prevent corruption; and urge governments to redouble their
efforts to implement Chapter II of UNCAC, develop long-term and
pragmatic strategies, and establish strong systems to promote integrity;
Reaffirm
the need for strong systems to promote integrity among public and
private sector officials, including context-sensitive and enforceable
codes of conduct, clear rules for post-government employment, relevant
financial disclosure requirements, and relevant compliance and
inspection programs;
CLEAN GOVERNMENT: PUBLIC
PROCUREMENT AND TRANSPARENCY
Recognize
that corruption in public procurement
diverts resources from the global community’s most pressing basic needs,
such as health, education, environment, and energy, thereby denying
services and resources to the world’s most needy;
Note
with serious concerns that corruption in procurement in vulnerable
sectors, such as defense, engineering, public health, energy and
infrastructure can be a serious threat to public security;
Urge
governments to safeguard against corruption in public procurement
through stringent transparency and accountability measures, as
prescribed in the UNCAC and following existing good practices and open
criteria, in close partnership with the private sector and local
communities;
PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS IN
INSTITUTION-BUILDING AGAINST CORRUPTION
Recognize
that corruption in the developing world erodes resources intended for
development and private investments alike, thereby depriving developing
countries of prospects for sustainable development and economic growth;
Further note
that corruption not only has a detrimental impact on developing
economies, but undermines donor and corporate efforts to promote
development and generate opportunities for growth;
Urge
business leaders to ensure that the highest standards of integrity are
upheld by all actors in the supply chain, including sub-contractors,
agents and intermediaries;
Urge
both donor and business communities to join forces to provide developing
countries with anti-corruption infrastructures consistent with UNCAC,
thus safeguarding investments and helping to ensure aid effectiveness;
BRIDGING THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
SECTORS’ EFFORTS
Recognize
the importance of transparency and
dissemination of information to oversight bodies, parliaments, media,
civil society, and electoral accountability;
Note
the power as well as positive
contribution of new information technologies to increase transparency,
asset traceability, oversight, and participation;
Call for
study, dissemination, and implementation
of good practices to protect those who provide information to
competent authorities, consistent with the whistleblower provisions of
UNCAC;
Agree
on the value of developing new and more sophisticated approaches to
assessing challenges and progress related to the fight against
corruption, its incidence, costs and other consequences, as well as the
value of properly recognizing the contributions of anticorruption
leaders;
GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS, ASSET
RECOVERY AND NO SAFE HAVEN
Are convinced
that the recovery and return of the
proceeds of corruption to their legitimate owners must be a fundamental
objective in our fight against corruption;
Agree
to prohibit
and deter the concealment of illicitly
acquired assets and highlight the importance of facilitating
international cooperation with respect to asset recovery consistent with
the provisions of the UNCAC;
Note the increased responsibilities of the financial sector in this regard
and encourage all relevant financial institutions to fully
cooperate in such endeavors;
Recommend that
governments deny safe haven to corrupt
officials, those who corrupt them, and their assets, and to strengthen
international cooperation on extradition, mutual legal assistance and
the recovery and return of proceeds of corruption, in accordance with
the relevant provisions of the UNCAC and other relevant instruments;
UNCAC’S IMPLEMENTATION
Welcome
the emergence of the UNCAC as the primary
global framework for international action and co-operation on corruption
among governments and between governments, the private sector and other
non-governmental actors;
Reaffirm our
commitment to the effective
implementation of the UNCAC, wishing every success to the Third
Conference of the State Parties as it considers important topics such as
implementation of the UNCAC, including review of implementation,
prevention, technical assistance, and asset recovery, and urge them to
dedicate their utmost efforts to accomplish the objectives established
by the Second Conference of States Parties;
Urge
governments to utilize the provisions of
the UNCAC to facilitate mutual legal assistance, extradition, asset
recovery, and other forms of international cooperation relating to the
fight against corruption, by providing appropriate specialized training
to criminal justice and other relevant officials;
Recognize
the positive inter-relationship between global, regional, and
sub-regional legal instruments against corruption and the need for
appropriate financial and technical assistance for the implementation of
these instruments in countries with limited resources;
Support
emerging initiatives on the key issues
identified above, including but not limited to the Stolen Asset
Recovery Initiative (STAR) and other efforts to promote implementation
of Chapter V of the UNCAC, such as the planned International
Anticorruption Academy, calling for it to make implementation of the
UNCAC a top priority and encouraging innovative curriculums such as
pragmatic workshops on combating kleptocracy and asset recovery;
Recommend
that utmost vigilance be exercised by
governments and their parliaments to ensure that national
anti-corruption authorities or bodies have the necessary authority,
resources and level of independence to properly exercise their
functions;
Express concern
over actions taken to threaten, harm, or
undermine leaders and officials of these bodies, or illegitimately
frustrate their work, as well as other governmental oversight officials,
investigative journalists, civil society advocates, and other good
governance reformers, and call for redoubled efforts to safeguard them
from harm in carrying on their duties;
THE WAY FORWARD: GLOBAL
PARTNERSHIPS
At the opening of the Global Forum VI in Doha, Qatar,
His Royal Highness The Emir, stated: “To change or reform
culture means to implant solid values that fight against corruption
and nepotism, while consolidating transparency; it means to build
institutions for the maintenance and reinforcement of the rule of
law; it means to respect and safeguard basic human rights; it means
also to broaden the scope for dialogue and open the way for sharing
responsibilities. It is, therefore, not a culture for the few but
for all; not for the governed alone but for the governor as well,
under the principle of equality before the law….We consider this
Forum as a platform for constructive dialogue between government
decision-makers, academic experts, leaders of the private sector and
representatives of the civil society. We view it as a nucleus of
interaction, not only for enriching knowledge, but also for opening
new horizons for more effective policies and practices so as to
build new bridges and create new partnerships among peoples from
different parts of the world, in order to help alleviate their
suffering, narrowing existing technological and institutional gaps
and thus contributing to a favourable environment for the
requirements of sustained development. Hence, our insistence that
sustained development be linked with sustainable governance. This
means more transparency, more accountability and more integrity, all
necessary ingredients required to foster a culture of rejection of
corruption.”
Applaud
the leadership and commitment exhibited by the governments of the United
States, the Netherlands, Brazil, South Korea, South Africa and Qatar in
hosting successive ministerials of the Global Forum;
Reaffirm
our unity of effort to fight against corruption and to continue to
collectively mobilize the international political will on this important
issue, as well as our determination to continue to strengthen
international cooperation;
Encourage
continued vibrant global anticorruption
networks to enhance our fight against corruption, such as, the IAACA,
the OECD Working Group on Bribery, the OECD-ADB regional anticorruption
initiative for Asia, the APEC Anticorruption and Transparency Task
Force, the Inter-American Convention against Corruption Follow-up
Mechanism (MESICIC), the AU Convention Against Corruption, the Council
of Europe’s Group of the States Against Corruption (GRECO), the MENA
Anti-Corruption and Integrity Network (ACINET), the OECD Anti-Corruption
Network for Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and Transparency International;
and recommend greater inter-regional cooperation and interaction
between them;
Welcome
the initiative of Thailand to act as
host of the 14th International Anticorruption Conference (14th
IACC) in Bangkok on November 10-13, 2010. We also
acknowledge
the important work of the International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC),
first held in 1983, in bringing together civil society, government and
business from around the world to find effective solutions for
responsible governance and tackling corruption. The Global Forum has
long recognized the value of partnering with civil society and the
private sector in the common effort to prevent and combat corruption and
promote the full implementation of UNCAC. In this light, we also
support the inclusion of a high-level “Community of Nations” segment
in the IACC as a useful platform for government officials to continue
their engagement with civil society and the private sector;
Agree
on the central and prominent place occupied by the UNCAC as the
principal global instrument to fight corruption and support the
processes related to the Conference of State Parties;
Finally, we are satisfied
that the mandate of the UNCAC fully reflects and extends the objectives
of the Global Forum on Fighting Corruption and Safeguarding Integrity
and – trusting that it is in the best interest of economy and efficiency
– that henceforth its spirit be integrated into the framework provided
by the COSP, IACC and other important global anticorruption initiatives,
we decide – with great appreciation for the work accomplished –
to bring to an end the Global Forum series with the successful
conclusion of Global ForumVI, at Doha, Qatar, on 8 November 2009. We
also decide to endorse all of its recommendations, which are
contained in the Annex, for submission to the Third Session Conference
of the States Parties, along with this final statement.
Doha
8 November 2009
ANNEX – DOHA RECOMMENDATIONS
Plenary Sessions
Roundtable 1.
The Fundamentals of Deterrence: Raising the Risk and Combating Impunity
Roundtable 2.
Creating and Maintaining a Culture of Integrity
Roundtable 3.
Public-Private Partnerships in Procurement: Leveling the Playing Field
Roundtable 4.
Public-Private Partnerships for Institution-Building against Corruption
Roundtable 5.
Bridging the Public and Private Sectors’ Efforts for Reform
Roundtable 6.
Global Finance Crisis and Corruption
Youth Forum
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