Every year, on December 9, the world observes International Anti-Corruption Day. It serves as a reminder for each of us to actively speak up and combat corruption in our own and other people’s lives. The United Nations has designated this day to draw attention to the need of taking anti-corruption measures. The goal of the 2021 International Anti-Corruption Day is to highlight the rights and responsibilities of everyone in combating corruption, including states, government officials, civil servants, law enforcement officers, media representatives, the private sector, civil society, academia, the public, and youth.
International Anti-Corruption Day: A Brief History
Corruption has existed from the beginning of time. The Code of Hammurabi of Babylonia, the Great Edict of Horemheb of Egypt, and Arthashastra of India include some of the earliest recordings of anti-corruption writings. These writings discussed bribery among state and law enforcement agents. In the nineteenth century, the notion of public interest and welfare began to acquire traction in Western culture, and greater attention was paid to the developing corruption in professional services such as the bureaucracy. Corruption was becoming recognized not just as an unwelcome habit, but also as one that imposed a high cost on society.
Transparency International is currently one of the most well-known organizations against corruption in nations throughout the world. It was started by Peter Eigen, a World Bank executive who saw the bad impact of corruption in East Africa and decided to establish a non-profit to bring greater attention to the issue. In 1993, the secretariat was established in Berlin. Every two years, it holds the International Anti-Corruption Conference, which brings together civil society, bureaucrats, organizations, and political leaders to discuss the unique, cross-cutting difficulties faced by corruption. It hosted its first virtual conference in 2020, which may be seen online.
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A victory, a defeat, and an opportunity
2021 was supposed to be a watershed moment in anti-corruption efforts, but it has so far fallen short. There have been several notable advancements. For example, because of the resolve of our and our friends, the push to halt the exploitation of anonymous shell corporations is now gaining traction.
However, the UN General Assembly Special Session on Corruption, conducted in June, was not what we had hoped for. Governments openly rejected civil society’s pleas to combat massive corruption, sometimes refusing to recognize it. The term “grand corruption” refers to high-level corruption that results in large-scale misappropriation of public monies and resources. It deprives people of their ability to govern and allows political leaders to commit heinous human rights atrocities.
Corruption schemes involving big sums of money and high-ranking officials almost usually transcend many countries. Failures in the past to prevent and combat such cross-border corruption have had a negative influence on the health of democracies. There is now a chance to turn the tide.
These interconnected challenges will be central to this week’s Summit for Democracy, which will be hosted by US Vice President Joe Biden. More than 100 nations’ leaders are expected to join him in launching a “year of action” to combat corruption, authoritarianism, and rampant human rights violations.
We require a structural shift.
When governments approved the UN Convention Against Corruption in 2003, the international community recognized that corruption damages democracy. Over the last 15 years, most governments across the world have made little to no progress in the battle against corruption, according to the most recent Corruption Perceptions Index.
Failure to address public sector corruption has resulted in misery for ordinary people in the worst-affected nations, who continue to be denied fundamental public services, robbed of economic prospects, and trapped in poverty. In many other cases, it has been a decade in which policies and choices have been skewed in favour of a strong few, while accountability systems have been degraded or even taken over.
Conclusion
Corruption has an impact on many aspects of society. Corruption prevention accelerates progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, protects our planet, generates employment, advances gender equality, and ensures greater access to key services like healthcare and education.
While it is everyone’s right to benefit from effective anti-corruption measures, misbehaviour and wrongdoing are siphoning off critical resources just when they are required to respond to and recover from the COVID-19 disaster.
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