Media Center

Press Release

INSULZA UNDERSCORES OAS ROLE IN FIGHTING CORRUPTION

CARTAGENA, Colombia—The Secretary General of the Organization of American States(OAS), José Miguel Insulza, underscored the progress that countries in the region have made in fighting corruption, as evidenced by their implementation of electoral reforms. Speaking to an international seminar on Transparency against Corruption, Insulza said these advances—seen in the twelve elections taking place in the region between December 2005 and December 2006—imply an effort by governments to increase citizen confidence in democratic institutions.

“It is a reality that democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean is being strengthened,” Insulza said. He cautioned, however, that “there is a certain degree of uncertainty over the shape and future of its strengthening – not because there is fear of an institutional breakdown or a takeover by armed groups, but because the fear has to do with the conditions in place for governance.” The Secretary General explained that “people worry about whether democracy is capable of giving them the real benefits to which they aspire and to which they have a right.”

“An absence of transparency fosters corruption, and corruption erodes the credibility of democratic institutions,” Insulza said. “That is why,” he added, “without solid and trustworthy institutions it will be very difficult to resolve people’s problems, and we have already seen that dissatisfaction has led to the fall of numerous leaders in our countries who were elected democratically.” It is increasingly clear, Insulza concluded, “that corruption affects democratic governance.”

Insulza, who was invited to the event by Colombia’s Comptroller General, Antonio Hernández Gamarra, referred to the OAS Charter , which holds that “representative democracy is an indispensable condition for the stability, peace and development of the region.” This principle, he said, “leads us to reflect on how important it is for citizens to see and feel that those who govern them represent, with probity and transparency, their collective interests. Failing to inform citizens in a transparent manner about the business of government, or distorting democratic pronouncements, profoundly affects credibility,” Insulza said.

In his address, the OAS Secretary General emphasized that the hemisphere’s governments have clearly understood these principles and added that “they have been aware of the need to work together to confront this problem, which transcends ideological and geographical borders.” Insulza noted that in 1996, the OAS member states adopted the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, which has since inspired other similar treaties, such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption .

International cooperation is particularly important in the fight against corruption, Insulza said, adding that the Inter-American Convention has been signed by all 34 active member states and ratified by 33. “While it is important that countries work together against corruption,” he said, “countries can individually adopt internal measures to combat the problem. But given the transnational nature of the phenomenon, such measures alone are not enough; hence the Inter-American Convention promotes joint efforts to combat this scourge,” he said.

With a view to ensuring that countries in the region implement these anti-corruption measures, an ad hoc mechanism was created within the OAS to assess compliance with the treaty’s provisions, Insulza said. After its first round of analysis, the Mechanism for Follow-up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption recommended that anti-corruption legal and institutional systems be strengthened. It called for “implementing new tools, preserving public resources, uncovering illicit enrichment, fostering the participation of civil society, and strengthening oversight bodies, as well as cooperation among states,” Insulza said.

The Secretary General concluded with an assurance that the OAS would continue to track developments related to the issue of transparency and probity, and to work closely with the region’s governments, “which play a central role in this fight against the scourge of corruption.”

Insulza is scheduled to meet this afternoon in Cartagena with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and Foreign Minister Carolina Barco.

Reference: E-149/06