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Welcome to the eleventh issue of the quarterly newsletter from
Integrity Initiatives International (III, pronounced "triple I") concerning global efforts to strengthen the enforcement of criminal laws to punish and deter corrupt leaders and end impunity for grand corruption.
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We have two exciting events tomorrow, April 24, that you can watch online. Join high court judges, former cabinet ministers, and activists to learn more about the International Anti-Corruption Court (IACC) at an event hosted by Fordham Law School. Earlier in the day, watch the next IACC Youth Talk highlighting the anti-corruption work of members of III's Youth Leaders Network. More information on both events can be found below.
Read on to also learn more about:
- IACC advocacy efforts around the world;
- the III Youth Leaders Network;
- a U.S. anti-corruption update;
- and other upcoming events.
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TOMORROW: WATCH VIRTUAL EVENTS ON THE IACC
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Fordham Law Hybrid Panel on the International Anti-Corruption Court
Tomorrow, April 24, from 4:00 pm - 5:50 pm EDT
Online and at Fordham Law School, Room 2-01A
To watch online, register for the event here.
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Also tomorrow, the next IACC Youth Talk will feature members of the III Youth Leaders Network are implementing in Africa and Latin America. Register in advance here.
9 am EDT / 2 pm GMT / 3 pm CET & SAST / 4 pm EAT & EET
Check out past episodes below.
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INTERNATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION COURT (IACC) ADVOCACY
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In March 2024, III Chair Judge Mark Wolf; Board Members of III Europe, our newly-founded sister organization in The Hague, Diana Eggleston and Maja Groff; and III Managing Director Ian Lynch traveled to London to engage with political leaders, legal experts, and civil society.
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The III team and fellow IACC advocate John Penrose MP (Conservative), the former UK Anti-Corruption Champion, met with anti-corruption officials at the UK Foreign Office to discuss the proposed court. III also met with a senior foreign policy advisor to the Labour party, which has committed to championing the IACC proposal if it wins elections this year.
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Among other meetings, the III team visited the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC) to learn more about how they facilitate transnational anti-corruption cases, gleaning insights that will be valuable for the production of the IACC draft treaty. The team also visited the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law to discuss collaboration.
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Virtual Africa Sounding Board Meeting
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In March, III and Club de Madrid (CdM) hosted a Virtual Africa Sounding Board Meeting on the IACC. Key regional governments and civil society stakeholders joined for a briefing on the global efforts to create the IACC and to provide feedback on the court's design.
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Speakers included:
- Moussa Mara, Former Prime Minister of Mali and CdM member
- Richard Goldstone, Former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and Vice Chair of III
- Ketakandriana Rafitoson, Executive Director of Transparency International Initiative Madagascar
- Charles Adeogun-Phillips, Former Head of Special Investigations at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and III Board member
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IACC Draft Treaty - Expert Meeting in Hamburg, Germany
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The New Institute in Hamburg, Germany has graciously provided its facilities for meetings of the IACC draft treaty project. In August 2023, it hosted the first in person scoping meeting of the expert group working on the treaty.
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Overall, more than 60 international judges, lawyers, scholars, and anti-corruption experts are now contributing to the efforts to produce the draft treaty. In August 2024, a large group of the experts will reconvene at The New Institute to polish the draft before beginning consultations with interested states and civil society.
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Ahead of the May 29 elections in South Africa, a team of dedicated activists from Leaders for Integrity, Accountability Now, and Corruption Watch are working to raise awareness about the IACC proposal. In recent months they have met with former President Thabo Mbeki, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, the Defend Our Democracy Movement, leading academics and more as they build a broad South African coalition in favor of an IACC.
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In March, Koogan Pillay, Co-Chair of the Africa Subcommittee for the IACC Campaign, presented the IACC at the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) meeting to 200 delegates representing government, business, and civil society.
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In April, Pillay and Justice Richard Goldstone presented the IACC at the Good Governance Africa (GGA) and Afrosai-E Anti-Corruption Seminar. The Anti-Corruption Seminar brings together a range of stakeholders to present and discuss fortifying anti-corruption efforts across Africa.
Also in April, Paul Hoffman, III Board Member, gave a presentation about the IACC to a range of civil society groups at the Action for Dialogue. The IACC team in South Africa will be joining many more events ahead of the May elections - stay tuned!
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On April 4, III Chair Judge Mark Wolf and III Managing Director Ian Lynch were invited to the Renew Democracy Initiative's Heroes of Democracy Gala. There, they connected with new and old partners among RDI's community of pro-democracy activists and government leaders. Among the awardees, the Estonian Ambassador to the UN Rein Tammsaar (pictured center) accepted the award on behalf of Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas. You can watch the prime minister's recorded acceptance speech here.
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On the last Wednesday of each month, the IACC Youth Talk Series brings you conversations between youth audiences and leaders in anti-corruption and international justice. The forum is dedicated to empowering global youth voices in the campaign for an IACC.
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The Archive of Past Episodes
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In the first episode of the IACC Youth Talk Series, the panelists introduced the IACC proposal, the ongoing IACC draft treaty process, and plans for the campaign to create it.
Listen to the episode here.
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In the second episode of the IACC Youth Talk Series, the panelists assessed the existing international court landscape, analyzing lessons learned from the International Criminal Court (ICC), the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL), and more.
Watch the episode here.
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In the latest IACC Youth Talk (episode 3), experts working on the IACC draft treaty delved into topics they are working on, including international cooperation, internal court management, the role of judges, asset recovery and return, and the potential jurisdiction of the court.
Watch the episode here.
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VOICES FROM III'S YOUTH LEADERS NETWORK
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by Kayiwa Samuel - Project Officer on Human Rights and Civic Space at Students for Global Democracy (SGD) Uganda
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SGD Uganda, a student-led nonprofit founded in 2005, aims to inspire young people to embrace principles of leadership, good governance, and sustainability in Uganda and globally. SGD Uganda serves as a platform for youth advocacy on issues including sustainable development, accountable governance, and conflict resolution and prevention.
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As a Project Officer at SGD Uganda, I help youth engage in democracy and defending human rights by developing, managing, and implementing education and civil engagement projects among Ugandan students. I build partnerships with civil society organizations, educational institutions, and government agencies to promote youth civic participation.
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U.S. ANTI-CORRUPTION UPDATE
Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA) Passed
We mentioned this in our last newsletter, but it is worth repeating. In December 2023, the United States passed the bipartisan Foreign Extortion Prevention Act (FEPA).
The FEPA gives the U.S. Government the authority to criminally prosecute any foreign official who demands or accepts a bribe from any American or American company, anywhere in the world. Like the proposed IACC, the FEPA will increase the credible threat of prosecution against kleptocrats.
To learn more about FEPA, watch the following event at Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) co-organized by Elaine Dezenski, III Board Member and Senior Director of FDD's Center on Economic and Financial Power.
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On May 22, you can stream a discussion about the IACC organized by Botswana Centre for Public Integrity at 10:00 am EDT / 4:00 pm CAT and CEST.
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In the coming months, the III team will be attending the following and more:
Beyond Bretton Woods at Middlebury College, Vermont
May 2-4
The UN Civil Society Conference in Nairobi, Kenya
May 9-10
- The conference will feature a workshop on the IACC proposal. Speakers will include Don Deya, CEO of the Pan African Lawyers Union; Sheila Masinde, Executive Director of TI Kenya; Maja Groff, III Senior Treaty Advisor; Rebecca Shoot, Executive Director of Citizens for Global Solutions; and more.
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The International Bar Association (IBA) Anti-Corruption Committee Conference at the OECD in Paris, France
June 12-13
- Speakers on the IACC will include Susan Lamb, a former Justice of the Supreme Court of Belize with extensive experience at international tribunals.
The African Union Mid-Year Summit in Accra, Ghana
Dates TBD
Transparency International's International Anti-Corruption Conference in Vilnius, Lithuania
June 18-21
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Goldstone calls for International Anti-Corruption Court
Primedia+, April 15, 2024
By John Maytham
An international court with teeth needed to combat global scourge of grand corruption
Daily Maverick, April 11, 2024
By Justice Richard Goldstone, Paul Hoffman, and Ian Lynch
Brasil apoiará a criação do Tribunal Internacional Anticorrupção? (Will Brazil support the creation of the International Anti-Corruption Court?)
Interesse Nacional, April 5, 2024
By Leopoldo Pagotto
Creating an International Anti-Corruption Court with Judge Mark Wolf
Building the Future: Center for Strategic & International Studies, March 25, 2024
By Dan Runde
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