Thailand urged to join anti-bribery convention

[webfact]

Thailand urged to join anti-bribery convention
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- Of the 40 countries signed up to the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention, only four are found to be engaged in "active enforcement" of the rules, according to Transparency International (TI), which has urged other nations and territories to join the convention.

"The G-20 [Group of 20] has repeatedly recommended that all G-20 states adhere to the OECD [Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development] Anti-Bribery Convention. China, India, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have not yet done so. In view of their growing role in international business, they should do so promptly.

"We also encourage Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand to join the convention," the anti-corruption organisation said in its annual report released this week.

The four countries with active enforcement of the rules in regard to corruption by public officials are Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland, which control 26.2 per cent of the world's exports.

Italy, Australia, Austria and Finland - with 6.1 per cent of global exports - are rated by TI as signatories with moderate enforcement.

For a country to be classified in the "active" or "moderate" enforcement categories, at least one major case needs to have been commenced or concluded in the past four years.

The remaining 30 countries - accounting for 28.2 per cent of world exports - are those with "limited or little" enforcement, according to TI's report on the enforcement of rules on foreign bribery.

The OECD convention targets officials who have committed any forms of bribery in order to increase exports from their countries.

Under the Anti-Bribery Convention, adopted in 1997, each signatory country is required to make foreign bribery a crime for which individuals and enterprises are responsible.

The annual report on foreign-bribery enforcement presents an independent assessment on the status of enforcement in all of the 40 parties to the convention, including Russia, where the convention entered force in 2012, and Colombia, which came on board this year.

"Getting lagging governments to meet their commitments should be a top priority. The challenge ahead is to build political support in the countries with lagging enforcement, and also to prevent weakening of support in countries where there is enforcement," TI said in the report.

A country report from Australia stated that the former managing director of the Australian Wheat Board (AWB) had admitted in August last year to negligence in the performance of his director duties, and was fined 100,000 Australian dollars (about Bt3 million). He was also disqualified from managing a corporation for two years by Victoria state's Supreme Court for breaching the Corporations Act.

This was in connection with reported payments of nearly US$300 million (Bt9.4 billion) to the Iraqi government under the administration of Saddam Hussein, in connection with the United Nations Oil-for-Food Programme.

After the Australian Securities and Investment Commission's civil actions against senior executives of the AWB in April 2010, the commission also won an appeal in March this year to increase the sanctions for one of the four other executives also accused of bribery.

The executive admitted in June 2012 to having contravened the Corporations Act by failing to act upon available information to investigate the possible payment of fees to the Iraqi government, and as such, the penalty was increased from a A$10,000 fine and four-and-a-half-month disqualification from managing corporations to a A$40,000 fine and a 15-month disqualification.

The actions for alleged breaches of director duties against the other four executives are still pending.

Since 2009, some 22 investigations have been initiated, with three in that year, four in the following, five in 2011 and 10 last year. None of those investigations led to prosecutions in 2012 and seven were dropped.

Among the ongoing investigations is one involving Leighton Holdings, which self-reported suspected improper payments in Iraq, and possibly in Indonesia.

According to the OECD Working Group on Bribery's "Phase 3 Report on Implementing the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention", an Australian company self-reported in June last year possible improper payments made by a foreign subsidiary.

The alleged payments were to facilitate a wharf construction understood to be in southern Iraq.


-- The Nation 2013-10-10

[clockman]

Well, first of all. You would have to bribe them! End of story.

[ricardofel]

Thailand...the land of greed & bribes....corruption too of course.

[spidermike007]

But, the facts are that Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore are very active in the fight against corruption. Thailand is not. On any level they are not. So, it is rather irrelevent for this organization to be pushing the others to join. Thailand needs to join. They need to be pushed to do something about the bubonic corruption plague that has permeated nearly every level of life here. That is, if they hope to advance, move forward, and continue to grow as a nation.

[Saradoc1972]

"For a country to be classified in the "active" or "moderate" enforcement categories, at least one major case needs to have been commenced or concluded in the past four years."

Bit of a problematic rule if there just is no bribery to have a major case over in in a given country.

Small wonder Thailand can't seem to qualify ....

[jpeg]

But, the facts are that Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore are very active in the fight against corruption. Thailand is not. On any level they are not. So, it is rather irrelevent for this organization to be pushing the others to join. Thailand needs to join. They need to be pushed to do something about the bubonic corruption plague that has permeated nearly every level of life here. That is, if they hope to advance, move forward, and continue to grow as a nation.

I thought it odd lumping those countries in with Thailand. Before anyone starts, yes they have corruption too, but not on the supremely grand scale that Thailand does, and even if Thailand did sign, does anyone really believe they'd uphold their signed promise?

[casindonet]

Corruption is like a national sport in thailand. Why would they want to join a groupie that is against corruption?

Sent from my GT-I9200 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[SOTIRIOS]

....duh....what's in it for them....555...

[FireMedic]

Does anyone else have a feeling stories like this regarding "Thailand and anti-corruption" in the same headline is a joke being played on us? Like a troll post, but a troll story.....

[ChrisY1]

One of the major obstacles in Thailand is that most people here don't know right from wrong anymore...corruption is now so extensive and wide reaching, the population is so accustomed to the "system".....many do not understand why things should change....including the lawmakers who, most definately,want no change.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[fab4]

"For a country to be classified in the "active" or "moderate" enforcement categories, at least one major case needs to have been commenced or concluded in the past four years."

Bit of a problematic rule if there just is no bribery to have a major case over in in a given country.

Small wonder Thailand can't seem to qualify ....

Thats odd, I could've sworn that Sondhi Limthongkul was sentenced to 20 years for corruption - sounds like a serious case of corruption if you ask me.

[whybother]

Just remember, in Thailand, it's not bribery, it's a religious tradition.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/618784-chalerm-not-a-bribe-if-cops-ask-for-money-on-chinese-new-year/

[Thai at Heart]

Soon to be followed by an "urge" and zero change.

[Neilly]

Thailand urged to join anti-bribery convention

You can 'urge' it all you like...it may even join...but I doubt if anything will change in the way business is conducted here

[tingtongteesood]

There is more chance of Taksin the criminal serving his jail term than Thailand becoming corruption free - these 2 things are actually very closely linked....

[zyphodb]

Thailand urged to join anti-bribery convention

[Mosha]

Thailand urged to join anti-bribery convention

[Baerboxer]

The PM/DM has already announced her governments intentions for fight corruption. I'm sure she will be pleased to join international initiatives like this that will demonstrate Thailand is ready and willing to play a more prominent role on the world stage. Just like joining the UN Security Council and leading AEC.

Hope no one mentions rice schemes, emergency flood relief budgets, illegally issued passports, corrupt justice systems or high profile convicted fugitives seeming immune to extradition requests. Still, she can always smile and walk away.

[Stradavarius37]

Thailand anti bribery....

[Pitts]

Well, first of all. You would have to bribe them! End of story.

Gold! But also so true, read the topic and actually laughed...