MEXICO RECEIVES ON-SITE VISIT OF THE OAS ANTICORRUPTION MECHANISM (MESICIC)

From March 21 – 23, 2012, Mexico received, with its consent, a visit by the Commission of the OAS Anticorruption Mechanism (Mechanism for Follow-Up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption – MESICIC), as part of the review process of said Mechanism, carried out in accordance with the Methodology adopted by consensus by its Member States.  

The Commission was composed of Mathilda Haykal Sater, Legal Counsel of the Criminal Law Policy Section of the Department of Justice of Canada, and by Susana Silva Hasembank, General Coordinator of the High Level Anticorruption Commission of the Presidency of the Counsel of Ministers of Peru, who represent their countries before the Mechanism, and who were also supported by the General Secretariat of the OAS in the visit.  

During the three days of work, the members of the Commission met, among others, with representatives of the Civil Service Secretariat and Internal Control Bodies; the Office of the Prosecutor General; the Office of the Auditor General; the Federal Judicature Council; the Legislative Branch; the Federal Institute for Access to Public Information; and the National Archives Office, in order to obtain objective and complete information and reveal potential difficulties in the implementation of the Inter-American Convention. It also provided an opportunity to facilitate the obtaining of information related to best practices, and provided México the opportunity to benefit from or to request technical assistance.   

The Commission also had the opportunity to meet with civil society organizations, private sector organizations, professional associations, academics and researchers, to address issues useful for the purposes of the visit, such as, among others, co-responsibility in the prevention and combating of corruption; the cooperation between civil society and private sector with oversight bodies; coordination an transparency within these bodies; criminal law enforcement; and the proposed Reform of the Federal Law on Transparency and Access to Public Information in the Possession of the Government. 

The results of this visit forms part of the review process that is currently being carried out by the Committee of Experts of the MESICIC, and which will conclude with the adoption of the Mexico country report by the Committee at its next plenary meeting to be held in September 2012, in Washington DC at OAS Headquarters.  

The MESICIC is a cooperation mechanism between States, with the participation of civil society organizations, established within the framework of the OAS, in which the legal/institutional framework of each country is reviewed for suitability with the Inter-American Convention against Corruption as well as the objective results achieved therein. The incorporation of on-site visits as a stage and integral part of the MESICIC review process represents an innovative and pioneering initiative in the context of the OAS, especially for a peer review mechanism and the importance of the issues it addresses.  

For more information on the MESICIC, please visit the Anti-Corruption Portal of the Americas at www.oas.org/juridico/english/fightcur.html

What is the MESICIC?

The Mechanism For Follow-up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, known as MESICIC for its Spanish acronym, is a tool to support the development of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption through cooperation between States Parties.

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