The United Nations (UN) plays a significant role in the international fight against corruption in many countries of the Earth. The solution of this issue is as relevant as many other pressing problems that this international organization is solving. The UN Convention against Corruption has become another step in the fight against this criminal phenomenon, which hinders the development of fair competition in free market relations.
Backstory
In 2003, the United Nations High-Level Political Conference was held in the city of Merida in Mexico, within the framework of which the first participants signed the UN Convention against Corruption. This day, December 9 - the start date of the Mexican conference - has become the official anti-corruption day.
The UN Convention against Corruption itself was adopted a little earlier - 31.10.2003. This decision was approved by the UN General Assembly. The vast majority of states agreed with the need for official recognition of this problem. To solve this problem, collective actions and measures are needed.
The UN Convention against Corruption entered into force only in 2005 - after the expiration of90 days after the signing of this document by 30 UN Member States. Unfortunately, given that the UN is a huge international organization, the decision-making mechanisms are quite slow and clumsy, so many of the provisions take months or even years to implement.
Basics
This document sets out in as much detail as possible the essence of international corruption, its main characteristics. It also proposes specific measures to combat and combat corruption. UN specialists have developed official terminology and agreed on a list of measures that each state that has acceded to the convention must ensure in order to combat corruption.
The convention details the principles for the recruitment of public officials, provides recommendations on public procurement, reporting and many other issues that contribute to more transparent public and private relations.
Who signed and ratified
Currently, the vast majority of Member States have acceded to the UN Convention against Corruption.
Of particular interest to many experts is the 20th article of the UN Convention against Corruption, which refers to the illicit enrichment of public officials. The fact is that not all countries have domestic legal regulations and laws that allow the application of the provisions of this article.
BThere are many myths circulating in Russia about why Article 20 of the UN Convention against Corruption does not work. According to some critics, this was done to please some groups of influence who did not want to lose power and control.
However, there is a legal explanation for this fact - the content of Article 20 contradicts the Constitution of the Russian Federation, which refers to the presumption of innocence. In addition, in Russia there is no such legal term as "illegal enrichment". All this makes it impossible to implement the provisions of this article on the territory of the Russian Federation. However, this does not mean that it will always be so. In addition, such a situation is stipulated in the convention - all provisions of the convention must be implemented only if there are legal and legislative prerequisites.
Goals and objectives
The main goal is to eradicate such a criminal phenomenon as corruption, as it is completely contrary to the principles of democracy and free market relations, both between states and between individual companies. Corruption hinders the development of many regions and even states.
The states that have signed and ratified this document have committed themselves to detecting and combating corruption. The UN Convention facilitates international cooperation to detect cases of corruption, both at the regional and global levels.
For this purpose, a conference of the States Parties to the UN Convention against Corruption is convened every 2 years, within which information is updatedon the measures taken. Participants discuss the effectiveness of the implemented recommendations, make new decisions on future cooperation and partnership in the fight against corruption. In 2015, the conference was held in Russia, in St. Petersburg.
