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Ex-Indonesian minister jailed for 12 years in Covid-19 graft scandal.  “Former Indonesian social affairs minister Juliari Batubara has been sentenced to 12 years in prison over a multi-million dollar Covid-19 graft scandal…after receiving 32.4 billion rupiah ($2.25 million) in kickbacks in relation to the procurement of goods intended for Covid-19 social assistance packages.” Bangkok Post: https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/2169863/ex-indonesian-minister-jailed-for-12-years-in-covid-19-graft-scandal     Strengthening Law Enforcement Integrity (Webinar).  The Webinar on Tuesday 31 August 13:30-16:15 (GMT+7) is jointly organized by the American Bar Association and the UNODC Regional Office for Southeast Asia and the Pacific. It will  gather practitionres from the region and experts to discuss the most pernivious and common forms of corruption in policing and will provide a framework and evidence-based research for risk mitigation ...

Promoting a Fair Business Environment in Malaysia (Blog).  “After engaging with key public sector institutions over the last few years on strengthening national anti-corruption measures in Malaysia, UNDP’s approach now establishes efforts to enhance business integrity in the private sector. Working with SMEs helps to ensure a rigorous approach in addressing graft and creating a fair business environment in the country, as they contribute to the dynamism of the Malaysian economy.” Ashvinder Singh/UNDP: https://www.my.undp.org/content/malaysia/en/home/blog/2021/promoting-a-fair-business-environment-in-malaysia.html   Duterte faces fire for missing Covid-19 funds.   “Amid the sickness, death and economic collapse, a recent report by the Commission on Audit (COA), a constitutionally independent body, claimed up to 67.32 billion pesos ($1.3 billion) of Covid-19 management and relief funds were either unspent or underutilized… Acco...

Business Integrity in Small and Medium Enterprises (Webinar).   This webinar on Wednesday 25 August, 13:00-16:00 (GMT+7) provides an opportunity for business integrity stakeholders to share innovations, resources, signs of progress, and future directions related to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Southeast Asia, with a focus on the management of corruption risks and third-party due diligence, which are high priorities of the private business sector. The American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative will also be launching the Practical Guide to Corruption Risk Assessment for Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs) to help organisations promote integrity and responsible business conduct.” Ethixbase: https://ethixbase.com/webinar-business-integrity-in-smes-risk-assessment-and-corruption-prevention       Conflict and corruption: Case of Afghanistan, lesson for Nepal (Commentary).  “ The history of corruption has taught us one l...

A Cautious Challenge to Constitutionalizing Anticorruption Commissions (Blog).   “While some, such as those in Hong Kong and Singapore, have effectively executed their mandate to investigate and prosecute instances of graft, bribery, and other forms of corruption, others ACCs have been criticized as toothless, inefficient, or themselves corrupt…The evidence is murky and inconclusive, but there are some reasons to doubt whether constitutionalization can overcome the obstacles that have limited the effectiveness of ACCs in the past.” Brooke Davies/The Global Anticorruption Blog: https://globalanticorruptionblog.com/2021/08/09/a-cautious-challenge-to-constitutionalizing-anticorruption-commissions/     How to stop vaccine corruption, which is plaguing the global fight against COVID-19 (Opinion).  “A wave of vaccine corruption scandals have shaken the global COVID-19 vaccine rollout... Global partnership is critical to uprooting ...

Mongolia: USD 224 thousand recovered during the investigation.  “Investigators from the [Independent Authority Against Corruption of Mongolia] have transferred large sums of bribes seized during criminal investigations [of N. Bayarsaikhan, who received a large amount of bribes from citizens and business entities during his tenure as head of the division of the Specialized Inspection Agency] to the state treasury account of the Ministry of Finance.” Independent Authority Against Corruption of Mongolia: https://www.iaac.mn/news/mongolia-usd-224-thousand-recovered-during-the-investigation?lang=en      Indonesians’ attitudes to corruption and the environment – results of new survey released on 18 August.  To gain a better insight into what the Indonesian public thinks about this issue and others relevant to corruption, governance and natural resources, the Basel Institute on Governance and Lembaga Survei Indonesia (LSI), the...

Can the Olympics leave an anti-corruption legacy? (Blog).  “[We] may one day be able to say that a country is better governed in relation to human rights and anti-corruption because it hosted the Olympics or FIFA World Cup…[For example, an] organizing committee (the local host-city/country entity that oversees preparations) requires all third parties to adopt anti-corruption compliance and human rights due diligence, even if local law does not so require.” Andy Spalding/The FCPA Blog: https://fcpablog.com/2021/08/09/can-the-olympics-leave-an-anti-corruption-legacy/     Samsung boss to be freed from jail after bribery sentence.  “The billionaire boss of South Korea’s Samsung empire will be freed from jail on Friday after serving part of a 30-month sentence for bribing former South Korea president Park Geun-hye.” Rupert Neate/The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/aug/09/samsung-boss-to-be-free...

CMDA goes in for restructuring to curb corruption.  “In what could be a massive internal restructure of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA), 17 officials, including three chief planners, were transferred for the first time in 10 years. Sources said the move is aimed at ensuring transparency” The New Indian Express: https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2021/aug/07/cmda-goes-in-for-restructuring-to-curb-corruption-2341341.html     Speed up trials on corruption cases, says Selangor Sultan.  “[In Malaysia, the] Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, has ordered the trials of corruption cases to be speeded up. He said courts should not entertain postponement of cases without solid reasons because the people were fed up and tired of seeing prosecutions being dragged on for too long.” Free Malaysia Today: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/08/05/speed-up-trials-on-corru...

US Justice Department Returns More Than $1 Billion in Stolen Malaysian Funds   .  “The U.S. Justice Department said Thursday it has returned an additional $452 million stolen from Malaysia’s investment fund known as 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), bringing the total amount of money repatriated to the Malaysian government in the last five years to at least $1.2 billion.” VOA News: https://www.voanews.com/usa/us-justice-department-returns-more-1-billion-stolen-malaysian-funds     Christian group slates Duterte over human trafficking.  “A group of Catholics and evangelicals in the Philippines has challenged President Rodrigo Duterte to end human trafficking by stamping out corruption by state officials.” Joseph Peter Calleja/Union of Catholic Asian News: https://www.ucanews.com/news/christian-group-slates-duterte-over-human-trafficking/93544#     PML-N will launch ‘corruption paper...

Supreme Audit Institutions Independence Index : 2021 Global Synthesis Report.  “This report aims to inform and better equip World Bank task teams and development partners to support the strengthening of Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) in client countries… The report also responds to yearnings of several development partners to better understand the degree of SAI independence in countries and regions.” World Bank: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/36001?deliveryName=DM111286     Supreme Court panel reports rampant corruption in judiciary that begins with justice selection.  “A team commissioned by Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher Rana has reported that corruption and irregularities are rampant in [Nepal’s] judiciary…The around-250-page report has identified the existing justice appointment process as the most significant factor behind corruption in the judiciary.” Krishna Gyawali/Online Khaba...