AG/RES. 1398 (XXVI-O/96)

INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST CORRUPTION

(Resolution adopted at the eighth plenary session, held on June 7, 1996)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

MINDFUL:

That in the Declaration of Belém do Pará, of 1994, the foreign ministers urged "the study of measures, consistent with each country's legal system, aimed at fighting corruption, improving efficiency in the running of public affairs as well as promoting transparency and integrity in the management of public funds";

That the heads of state and government, meeting at the Summit of the Americas, in December 1994, said that "the problem of corruption is now an issue of serious interest not only in this hemisphere, but in all regions of the world," and added that "corruption in both the public and private sectors weakens democracy and undermines the legitimacy of governments and institutions"; and

That, in the 1995 Declaration of Montrouis: A New Vision of the OAS, the foreign ministers declared "their decision to fight public and private corruption in all its forms"; and

CONSIDERING:

That, in resolution AG/RES. 1346 (XXV-O/95), "Probity and Public Ethics," the General Assembly resolved in operative paragraph 8 "to instruct the Permanent Council that, once it has received the draft convention mentioned in the preceding paragraph, it should convene a Specialized Conference to consider and, if appropriate, adopt that draft convention, and should establish the date, venue, and agenda for that conference";

That the Permanent Council, in resolution CP/RES. 671 (1061/96), convened the Specialized Conference on the Draft Inter-American Convention against Corruption;

That the Specialized Conference adopted the Inter-American Convention against Corruption on March 29, 1996, and that 23 member states of the Organization of American States have signed it; and

That the Inter-American Convention against Corruption is the first international instrument of its kind designed to promote and strengthen the development by each state party of the mechanisms needed to prevent, detect, punish, and eliminate corruption; and to promote, facilitate, and regulate cooperation among the states parties to ensure the effectiveness of the measures and actions to prevent, detect, punish, and eliminate acts of corruption in the performance of public duties and acts of corruption specifically connected with those duties,

RESOLVES:

1. To express its satisfaction with the adoption of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption.

2. To express its appreciation to the Government of Venezuela for its invaluable contribution to the adoption of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and also to the Inter-American Juridical Committee and the Permanent Council Working Group on Probity and Public Ethics for their contributions; and to thank the General Secretariat for its support throughout this process.

3. To urge any member states that have not yet done so to sign the Inter-American Convention against Corruption as soon as possible.

4. To call upon the member states that signed the Inter-American Convention against Corruption to ratify it so that it may enter into force.

5. To urge other states to accede to the Inter-American Convention against Corruption.

6. To instruct the Secretary General to disseminate the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, especially Article XXIII thereof, as widely as possible among countries that are not members of the Organization.

7. To instruct the General Secretariat to report to the General Assembly at its twenty-seventh regular session, through the Permanent Council and its Working Group on Probity and Public Ethics, on progress made by member states with regard to signature and ratification of the Convention and accession thereto, as well as on its application and on the Organization's activities in support of this effort.