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The big rally in Kuala Lumpur this weekend, organised by Bersih—an electoral reform group angered by allegations of corruption in government—was a calm and joyful affair. Read the story in The Economist. http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21662497-large-orderly-marches-keep-pressure-embattled-prime-minsiter-malaysias-masses-protest

"Alienation on both sides of the economic divide, and the inability of Filipinos of different classes to relate to one another, have had deleterious effects on progress in [anti-corruption efforts], and it is important that Philippine policymakers take into account the limits imposed by socioeconomic disparities when considering possible strategies to tackle corruption." Read the post by Beatriz Paterno, in Global Anticorruption Blog. http://globalanticorruptionblog.com/2015/08/24/conflicting-philippine-identities-and-the-fight-against-corruption/

The Australian Federal Police's new Fraud and Anti-Corruption Centre says it is ramping up investigations on foreign bribery, a warning to Australian companies with foreign operations that they need to get their house in order. Read the story in The National Law Review. http://www.natlawreview.com/article/australian-federal-police-afp-launch-crackdown-foreign-bribery-corporates

[Facilitator’s note: Thank you to Annika Wythes, Luisa Senibulu, and Samita Singh of the joint UNDP-UNODC Pacific Regional Anti-Corruption Project for sharing these updates.] Tonga: Corruption concern. Youth in Tonga are laying out the groundwork for youth groups in the Pacific and Fiji to effectively participate in the war against corruption through their KOSH CRY campaign. http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=318071 Palau: Palau Ombudsman seeks clearer powers, more independence. The Office of the Ombudsman in Palau has drafted a proposed law that seeks to empower the Office of the Ombudsman and to give it more independence in pursuing its mandate. http://pidp.org/pireport/2015/August/08-25-07.htm Solomon Islands: New allegations cast doubts over Skyline Investment here. Allegations of fraud has emerged, casting serious doubts over the credibility and genuineness of an Asian company that has offered to invest millions of dollar in tourism and real est...

Malaysia is seen as a role model on anti-corruption, according to Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission deputy commissioner on prevention Datuk Mustafar Ali, who said many countries, including developed nations, look up to Malaysia's anti-corruption model as "best practices". Read the story by Joseph Kaos, Jr., in The Star Online. http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/08/26/Malaysia-MACC-Anti-corruption/

Anti-graft watchdog Indonesia Corruption Watch and the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute Foundation are calling on President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to tackle ongoing attempts to weaken the Judicial Commission (KY) by stopping legal attacks on two KY commissioners. Read the story in The Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/08/24/jokowi-urged-tackle-weakening-judicial-commission.html

Law No. 49/NA on Anti-Money Laundering and Combatting the Financing of Terrorism (“AML Law”), issued on 21 July 2014, took effect on 24 February 2015 in Laos. Read the article by Fred Burke, in Global Compliance News. https://globalcompliancenews.com/laos-new-anti-money-laundering-law-takes-effect20150824/?utm_source=wysija&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=weeklynewsletter

WSJ - Corruption Currents: Police Probe Ashley Madison Suicide Link ( Aug 25, 2015).   By Samuel Rubenfeld. http://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2015/08/25/corruption-currents-police-probe-ashley-madison-suicide-link/

Critics contend that China’s anti-corruption campaign has helped to slow the economy, but the evidence points to honest governance as better for growth, if integrity in officials can be promoted. Read the Christian Science Monitor editorial, in Yahoo News. http://news.yahoo.com/china-economy-cools-hot-debate-graft-192905925--politics.html

External Support for Decentralization Reforms and Local Governance Systems in the Asia-Pacific: Better Performance, Higher Impact?- 25-27 August 2015 The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Decentralization and Local Governance (DeLoG)—a network of 28 bilateral and multilateral development partners who work together to improve aid and development effectiveness in decentralization and local governance reforms—are holding this learning eventto focus on reform processes and their results in ADB's developing members (especially countries like Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Nepal, Pakistan, People’s Republic of China, and the Philippines). Read more: http://www.adb.org/news/events/external-support-decentralization-reforms-and-local-governance-systems-asia-pacific?utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alerts Innovations in Public Services – Doing Things Differently- 24 August 2015 The ADB Governance Thematic Group partnered with GIZ’s Sector Network Governance Asia  in organiz...

Government employees in the Maldives are reluctant to report corruption due to fear of being fired, a study by the Anti-Corruption Commission has shown. Read the story by Fazeena Ahmed, in Haveeru Online. http://www.haveeru.com.mv/news/61770

25 August 2015 Today's top story Canada: Real estate bought with offshore cash raises money laundering concerns CBC A report prepared for Canada's anti-money laundering watchdog points to offshore cash in the real estate sector as a "significant risk" for criminal wrongdoing. More news Australia: More women on sports boards would reduce corruption, doping, says researcher The Canberra Times Indonesia: Graft suspects, ex-convicts named official candidates for local elections The Jakarta Post Kosovo: Kosovo PM defends son for being paid to fix government car Reuters Mexico: Mexicans are outraged, but not surprised, at the corruption scandal that's rocking their president's office V...

United States: Apple CEO Tim Cook could face SEC scrutiny for violating fair disclosure regulation Published on Aug 25, 2015 11:30 pm     United Kingdom: Jeremy Hunt: NHS bosses face jail over links to drug firms Published on Aug 25, 2015 11:00 pm     Russia: Kremlin moves to ban Russian Wikipedia Published on Aug 25, 2015 10:30 pm     United States: Ashley Madison, parent company sued in U.S. over data breach Published on Aug 25, 2015 10:00 pm     Japan: Airbus eyes legal action against Japanese defence ministry Published on Aug 25, 2015 09:30 pm     India: Meet the women fighting corruption and saving mothers’ lives in India Published on Aug 25, 2015 09:00 pm     China: White House begs Xi Jinping for transparency as China’s woes threaten global economy Published on Aug 25, 2015 08:30 pm     United States: Third Point, Regulators Settle Over Antitrust Filings for 2011 ...

WSJ - Corruption Currents: Guatemalan President Rejects Calls to Resign (24 August 2015). By Samuel Rubenfeld. http://blogs.wsj.com/riskandcompliance/2015/08/24/corruption-currents-guatemalan-president-rejects-calls-to-resign/

The former head of the Municipal Court in Phnom Penh was arrested and charged with embezzlement after Cambodia’s Anti-Corruption Unit accused him of confiscating an Audi SUV from a convicted drug trafficker and giving it to his son. Read the story by Alexandra Demetrianova, in Asian Correspondent. http://asiancorrespondent.com/134959/court-chiefs-arrest-exposes-cambodias-selective-justice/

The University of Victoria Faculty of Law will introduce its first law course on global corruption to commence in September 2015. Read the story in Canadian Lawyer.   http://www.canadianlawyermag.com/5697/U-Vic-to-teach-long-overdue-course-on-anti.html

The Bangladesh cabinet gave final approval to the draft of the Money Laundering Prevention (Amendment) Act-2015, which limits the Anti-Corruption Commission's authority to investigate only corruption and bribery related cases, leaving the investigation of all other offences including cheating, forgery, illegal arms trade, drugs trade, and abduction to other agencies like the police, the customs department, and the Department of Narcotics Control. Read the story in The Daily Star. http://www.thedailystar.net/city/acc-investigate-only-corruption-bribery-now-128635

An international company specializing in anti-corruption due diligence has developed an interactive global "FCPA Map" displaying all the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (1977) cases by country, industry, and links to information on the outcome of each case. See the interactive map here: http://fcpamap.com/

Sri Lanka’s construction industry has called for laws to ensure continuity of projects despite changes in government and at the same time to penalize state agencies which break procurement rules. Read the story in Economy Next. http://www.economynext.com/Sri_Lanka_construction_trade_wants_action_against_procurement_corruption-3-2706.html

21 August 2015 Today's top story Iraq: Beyond terrorism, Iraq’s leader is struggling to fight corruption The Washington Post After five years of trying to get a job as a public school teacher, Saleh Ali paid a bribe of $4,300 to an official in Iraq’s Education Ministry to secure one. He says it was the only way. More news Global: FIFA team targets match-fixing, "many" cases of corruption – source Reuters Bolivia: Police raid Bolivian FA headquarters in corruption probe Reuter...

United States: SEC joins German investigation of Ford: source Published on Aug 21, 2015 11:30 pm     Switzerland: Swiss bank UBS searched in Malaysian money-laundering case Published on Aug 21, 2015 11:00 pm     United States: Ex-Redflex CEO Pleads Guilty to Bribing Chicago Official Published on Aug 21, 2015 10:30 pm     World: Anti-corruption watchdog: Only 4 of 41 countries actively fighting bribery by companies Published on Aug 21, 2015 10:00 pm     United States: Ex-JPMorgan banker to plead guilty in embezzlement case-hearing Published on Aug 21, 2015 09:30 pm     Russia: Former Russian executive agrees to plead guilty to money laundering in U.S. – report Published on Aug 21, 2015 09:00 pm     Brazil: Two Brazilian Lawmakers Charged in Petrobras Case Published on Aug 21, 2015 08:30 pm     India: Louis Berger bribery case: ED raids ex-Goa CM Digambar Kamat’s residence...