Africa and Middle East
Asia Pacific
The TI chapter in Senegal, Forum Civil, is highlighting best practices in local governance by creating a ‘transparency and integrity label’ – an award for local authorities which voluntarily submit their governance practices for citizen certification. The chapter held workshops on areas such as justice, taxation, customs and local authorities, to help participants understand the causes of poor governance and create action plans to increase the public’s involvement in policy formulation.
TI Sri Lanka’s annual National Integrity Award ceremony was attended by nearly 400 people from the public and private sectors, the media and civil society, who celebrated the achievement of W.M.Chandana Jayatissa, a former human resource manager of Milco (the government-owned milk company). He was recognised for raising allegations of fraud, sexual exploitation and appointments for unqualified people. Despite receiving death threats and losing his job, he won political and media support in his struggle to introduce good governance standards.
Americas The World Bank gave an anti-corruption action award to Transparencia por Colombia’s business strategy, in recognition of innovative solutions to corruption that highlight the role of the private sector. Awarded annually by TI and the Press and Society Institute, the prize for the best media investigation into corruption in Latin America and the Caribbean was won by two series of articles: one reporting public sector corruption over contract awards in Brazil; the other, illegal financial dealings in several countries by Catholic Church officials in Costa Rica. Selected from 189 entries from 19 countries, both winning stories had a strong impact: implicated individuals resigned from their positions and were brought before the courts. Investigations in both cases are ongoing. The director of the Dominican Republic’s Anti-Money Laundering Unit received the TI chapter Participación Ciudadana’s National Integrity Award for his role in prosecuting the perpetrators behind the country’s 2003 bank fraud. The awards ceremony took place at a dinner conference organised by the chapter on “Drug trafficking and corruption: its impact on democratic processes”. Javier Zaragosa, Prosecutor of the Supreme Court Chamber and head of the National Court of Spain, gave a key note address to an audience of government, business and civil society representatives.
In collaboration with the Thai Journalists Association, Transparency Thailand presented the Best Investigative Report Award to the Matichon newspaper, for reporting allegations of misconduct and irregularities in a national poverty alleviation fund project. As a result, an implicated minister resigned and the prime minister appointed a new executive committee chaired by a board member of the chapter.
Europe and Central Asia In collaboration with UNICEF, TI Albania held an awards evening attended by judges, prosecutors, diplomats, donors and NGO representatives, to celebrate justice reform in the country. Awards for outstanding achievement were given to judges, prosecutors and representatives of the Children’s Alliance, who promoted the rights of minors in Albania’s justice system. Hubert Sickinger, Vice President of TI Austria’s Advisory Board, received the Austrian Parliament’s 2009 Academic Award for his book on party funding and international standards of political financing. Political Financing in Austria also provides strong academic support for TI Austria’s calls for revised party funding laws. TI Greece was awarded an honorary distinction by the Federation of Hellenic Information and Communications Technology Enterprises, in recognition of its ongoing contribution to the fight against corruption. In collaboration with Macedonia’s (FYR) Chamber of Commerce, the TI chapter Transparency- Zero Corruption, awarded certificates for good corporate management. Based on pre-established criteria, a selection commission gave certificates to six companies, including three banks.
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Transparency International Annual Report 2009