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AG/RES. 1477 (XXVII-O/97)

INTER-AMERICAN PROGRAM FOR COOPERATION IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CORRUPTION

(Resolution adopted at the seventh plenary session, held on June 5, 1997)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN:

Resolution AG/RES. 1397 (XXVI-O/96), in which the General Assembly decided "to instruct the Permanent Council, through the Working Group on Probity and Public Ethics and taking into consideration the pertinent provisions of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, the respective national legal systems, the documents presented by the Chair of the Working Group and by the Secretary General, and any other contributions it deems relevant, to draw up a draft program for cooperation in the fight against corruption and submit it to the General Assembly at its next regular session"; and

The report of the Permanent Council on the draft resolution entitled "Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption" (AG/doc.3476/97);

CONSIDERING:

That the Charter of the Organization states in its preamble that "representative democracy is an indispensable condition for the stability, peace and development of the region" and that "juridical organization is a necessary condition for security and peace founded on moral order and on justice";

That the member states, in signing the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, stated, in the preamble, that they were "convinced that corruption undermines the legitimacy of public institutions and strikes at society, moral order and justice, as well as at the comprehensive development of peoples";

That the heads of state and government, meeting at the Summit of the Americas held in December 1994, stated 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. The modernization of the state, including deregulation, privatization and the simplification of government procedures, reduces the opportunities for corruption. All aspects of public administration in a democracy must be transparent and open to public scrutiny";

That on March 29, 1996, the Specialized Conference on the Draft Inter-American Convention against Corruption adopted the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, a unique international legal instrument that represents an important step forward in action taken within the purview of the Organization of American States;

That the purposes of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption are to promote and strengthen the development by each of the states parties of the mechanisms needed to prevent, detect, punish, and eradicate corruption, and to promote, facilitate, and regulate cooperation among the states parties to ensure the effectiveness of measures and actions to prevent, detect, punish, and eradicate corruption in the performance of public functions and acts of corruption specifically related to such performance;

That the Organization of American States has also been carrying out other activities to help fight the scourge of corruption, in areas such as the drafting of model laws on illicit enrichment and transnational bribery and the compilation of laws of the member states;

That, in response to the mandate issued by the General Assembly, the Working Group on Probity and Public Ethics has been considering the measures which should be adopted by the Organization of American States to achieve more effective international cooperation in fighting corruption;

That the priority interest shown by member states in pursuing the objectives set forth in the Convention, the activities under way in other international organizations, and the efforts of institutions representing civil society have given impetus to anticorruption requirements and opportunities to which the Organization should respond in an appropriate and timely manner; and

That the Organization of American States is an appropriate forum for exchanging information on the challenges faced by the countries of the region as they fight corruption and for implementing such cooperation mechanisms as the member states consider necessary in this important area,

RESOLVES:

1. To adopt—on the basis of the report of the Permanent Council on the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption (CP/doc.2897/97 corr. 1), which contains the report of the Working Group on Probity and Public Ethics that is attached as an integral part of this resolution—the following:

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