UNIS/CP/496
8 July 2004
Expert Meeting to Discuss Legislative Guide on United Nations Convention against Corruption
VIENNA, 8 July 2004 (UN Information Service) -- In an effort to assist Member States of the United Nations in ratifying and implementing the first United Nations Convention against Corruption, the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) will be hosting the first expert meeting for the elaboration of the Legislative Guide on the United Nations Convention against Corruption. The meeting will take place from 10 to 12 July at the UNICRI Headquarters in Turin, Italy, and is being organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
Some twenty distinguished experts will debate the prospective outline and contents of the Legislative Guide. So far, the Convention has been signed by 111 countries and ratified by three countries. It needs 30 ratifications to come into force. Once it has entered into force, the Convention will provide the international community with an efficient instrument to tackle corruption.
The United Nations General Assembly gave UNODC the mandate to support the negotiation of the Convention against Corruption and to assist Member States to ratify and implement its provisions.
Corruption is a transnational phenomenon that represents a severe obstacle to democracy and development, since it undermines the rule of law, government legitimacy and discourages investments, often with a devastating effect on the poorest countries. Corruption is a scourge for the public and private sectors and diminishes the image of governments; it can be defeated only through the strengthening of anti-corruption policies and control mechanisms. Under these circumstances, the adoption of the United Nations Convention against Corruption is a milestone.
The Legislative Guide will lay out the basic requirements for the incorporation in domestic legislation of the Convention against Corruption as well as the issues that each State party must address to implement the Convention. The Guide will be drafted taking into account different legal traditions and varying levels of institutional development and will suggest legislative changes in order to adapt domestic legislation to international provisions, if necessary.
Through the Legislative Guide, States with different legal traditions will be in a position to implement the Convention.
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