AG/RES. 1870 (XXXII-O/02)

FOLLOW-UP TO THE INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST CORRUPTION AND ITS PROGRAM FOR COOPERATION

 

(Adopted at the fourth plenary session held on June 4, 2002) 

 

            THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

 

RECALLING that the Declaration of Quebec City, adopted at the Third Summit of the Americas, recognizes that corruption undermines core democratic values, challenges political stability and economic growth, and thus threatens vital interests in our Hemisphere, and thus reiterates the commitment by the heads of state and government of the Americas to reinvigorate the fight against corruption;

 

CONSIDERING likewise that the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas devotes a special chapter to the fight against corruption and that commitments are made therein on the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, on the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption, on the establishment of a follow-up mechanism for implementation of said Convention, on strengthening the Inter-American Network for Cooperation against Corruption, on strengthening participation by civil society in the respective states in the fight against corruption, and on the adoption of policies, processes, and mechanisms that protect the public interest;

 

BEARING IN MIND the importance of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and the fact that it has been signed by 30 member states and ratified by 25, which means that four new states have signed and three more ratified the Convention in the past year;

 

RECOGNIZING the importance of the private sector and the responsibility it shares for the prevention of and fight against corruption;

 

BEARING IN MIND the mandates contained in resolution AG/RES. 1785 (XXXI-O/01), “Enhancement of Probity in the Hemisphere and Follow-up on the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption”;

 

BEARING IN MIND also the legal cooperation programs and activities carried out by the General Secretariat in developing the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption, with a view to promoting ratification and implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, as well as the dissemination and exchange of information through the Inter-American Network for Cooperation against Corruption;

 

RECOGNIZING WITH SATISFACTION the establishment of the Follow-up Mechanism for Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption as one of the first initiatives of the Third Summit of the Americas to be implemented within the framework of the OAS; and

 

HAVING SEEN the report of the Permanent Council on enhancement of probity in the Hemisphere and follow-up on the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption (CP/doc.    /02),

 

RESOLVES:

 

1.                   To urge those member states of the OAS that have not yet done so to give prompt consideration to signing and ratifying, or to ratifying, as the case may be, the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and to participate in the Follow-up Mechanism for its implementation.

 

2.                   To urge the states parties to the Convention to take any measures they deem appropriate to adapt their domestic law and comply with the commitments they undertook upon ratification of the Convention.

 

3.                   To invite states that are not members of the Organization, in particular the OAS permanent observers, to accede to the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, in accordance with Article XXIII thereof.

 

4.                   To request member states that have not done so to reply promptly to the Questionnaire on Ratification and Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (CP/GT/PEC-68/00 rev. 3), so that the Permanent Council may continue to examine replies from those states in order to enhance implementation of the Convention, strengthen cooperation, and provide technical assistance to those that request it.

 

5.                   To instruct the Permanent Council to continue to foster the exchange of experiences and information among the OAS, multilateral organizations, and international financial institutions, in order to coordinate, strengthen, and identify cooperation activities in the area, and to foster the participation of civil society and, in particular, the private sector, among other pertinent entities, in these activities.

 

6.                   To instruct the Permanent Council, in following up on the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption, to continue to consider the question of the role and shared responsibility of the private sector in preventing and combating corruption.

 

7.                   To request the General Secretariat to continue carrying out, in the execution of the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption, technical cooperation activities to provide assistance in the signing, ratification, or implementation of, or accession to, the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and to strengthen exchanges of information and experiences among government authorities responsible for this area, including those of the Inter-American Network for Cooperation against Corruption.

 

8.                   To recognize the importance of the establishment and launching of the Follow-up Mechanism for the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and the beginning of the work by its Committee of Experts to conduct the first round of analysis.

 

9.                   To invite the Conference of the States Parties to the Inter-American Convention against Corruption to consider, during its second meeting, the major advances made by the Follow-up Mechanism.

 

10.               To thank states parties and international organizations that have made voluntary contributions to the operations of the Follow-up Mechanism and to call upon all states parties and states that are not parties to the Convention to make voluntary contributions to facilitate and ensure the proper, ongoing operation of said Mechanism; and to request the General Secretariat to make arrangements with international organizations for contributions for the same purpose.

 

11.               To request the OAS General Secretariat to continue to serve as secretariat of the Follow-up Mechanism for the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and to provide it with all necessary technical support.

 

            12.        To instruct the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly at its thirty-third regular session.