(April 11, 2007) There is a wall of silence that is very difficult to penetrate. Everyone who is in a position to talk cannot do so because someone else in turn has something on him," said prosecutor Guido Penzhorn.
Transparency International should highlight tax havens
(March 22, 2007) The annual global graft ranking by Transparency International has come under fire for not including tax havens in its survey. The Norwegian aid journal, Development Today, reports that the international NGO Tax Justice Network (TJN) has called on Transparency International to rate tax havens as highly, if not higher, than bribery in terms of impact because developing countries lose more in revenue this way than from bribery.
Iraqi anti-corruption head says graft worse than in Saddam’s time
(March 8, 2007) Corruption in Iraq is now worse than it was during Saddam Hussein’s regime, the Chairman of Iraq’s Commission on Public Integrity (CPI), Radhi Hamza al-Radhi, said in an interview published by the Arabic-language Asharq Alawsat newspaper. "There are eight ministers and 40 general directors against whom corruption charges have been brought and they [have] all fled abroad," he said.
Amnesty needed for U.K. firms caught in corruption crackdown
(March 26, 2007) British businesses caught by the current round of anti-corruption investigations in the U.K. are in need of an amnesty arrangement, says global construction trade magazine, International Construction Review.
Zambia: Let the looters pay the vultures
(February 28, 2007) A recent British high court ruling that permits a so-called "vulture fund" to pursue an enormous profit on its purchase of Third World debt from Zambia has provoked a backlash from global debt campaigners. However, U.S. law professor Larry Cata Backer argues that, within an odious debts context, the fund ought to be able to seek repayment but not from the people of Zambia.
Wolfowitz takes actions to gear up World Bank for Iraq
(February 16, 2007) The Government Accountability Project (GAP) has learned from inside sources that World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is currently negotiating a contract with a new resident Iraq Country Director. This step strongly suggests that Wolfowitz intends to expand Bank-funded projects there dramatically in the near future, despite the deteriorating security situation and recent disclosures of massive corruption in "reconstruction" efforts.
Keep off the graft
(February 12, 2007) British Prime Minister Tony Blair released a much anticipated Commission for Africa report which called on the developed world to help Africa curb corruption by cleaning up its own act (The Guardian). The report signalled a new and hopeful direction for the Blair administration’s advance on the scourge of global graft. Blair talked about changing U.K. banking laws to speed up the return of public funds pocketed by corrupt African leaders. His government also issued new anti-corruption rules aimed at cracking down on kickbacks paid by U.K. exporters to win contracts overseas; href=”http://www.ft.com”Financial Times”
Hiding Africa’s Looted Funds: Silence of Western Media
(February 9, 2007) Quite often when you read newspapers, listen to radio and watch television in the West you learn how poor Africans are and how corrupt African leaders are. But you will never watch, read or hear anything in these media outlets about the role being played by Western banking institutions; property development and estate companies; the big corporations; and the western political and business elite in promoting corruption in Africa.
Ecuador may default on foreign debt deemed “illegitimate” debt, economy minister says
(February 7, 2007) Ecuador’s Economy Minister Ricardo Patino said late last month that his country had set up a commission to audit Ecuador’s US$10.3 billion external debt, and that Ecuador would not pay foreign debt that the commission declared "illegitimate."
Anti-corruption efforts
(February 7, 2007) Companies need the incentive of prosecution, fines and reputational risk to tackle bribery more effectively. The abandoning of a probe into BAE Systems’ dealings in Saudi Arabia shows a lack of will to deal with these issues, says Alexandra Wrage.
Kenya’s debt too heavy, says Nobel Peace Prize laureate
(January 23, 2007) Prof. Wangari Maathai, the Nobel Peace Prize winner of 2004, said Kenya had so far repaid more than $51 billion on external debt, the professor described as ‘suspect.’
Protest letter to Prime Minister Tony Blair concerning BAE Systems Plc
(January 15, 2007) International charities, churches and NGOs petition Prime Minister Blair to reopen a corruption probe into a controversial arms deal with Saudi Arabia.
France cancels 80% of its Iraqi debt
(December 22, 2006) France cancels the equivalent of $US5.2 billion of Iraqi debt, amounting to 80% of France’s claims towards Iraq.
Kenyan corruption case a step forward for odious debts campaign
(December 12, 2006) An International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes tribunal has struck out a lawsuit against the Kenyan government over a contract dispute after it discovered the contract had been secured illegally through a US$2 million bribe paid to former President Daniel arap Moi.
Starving Africa of money
(December 12, 2006) Deprived of the funds needed to develop their economies by the corruption-obsessed West, African countries are turning to China.
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