TI Announces Shortlist for Integrity Awards 2003

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TI announces shortlist for Integrity Awards 2003

From cleaning up corruption in local government to combating human trafficking, courageous individuals from Bosnia-and-Herzegovina, Greece, India, Poland, Nigeria and Samoa shortlisted for TI Integrity Award 2003

A banker from Mozambique and a journalist from Algeria considered for posthumous recognition

Berlin, 30 April 2003 --- A Greek sociologist fighting human trafficking, an Indian campaigner against corruption in forestry and government, and two Polish journalists who ran a radio series on bribery have been shortlisted for the Transparency Integrity Awards 2003. The shortlist of six is completed by the former Auditor General of Samoa, the head of one of the Tax Inspectorates in Bosnia-and-Herzegovina and the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration in Nigeria.

A journalist from Algeria and the chairman of the largest commercial bank in Mozambique will be considered for posthumous recognition. The fourth annual Integrity Awards will be presented at the opening ceremony of the 11th International Anti-Corruption Conference in Seoul, Korea, on 25 May.

The annual TI Integrity Awards seek to underline the work of individuals and organisations that have shown great bravery and integrity in combating corruption, and the nominees are adjudicated by a selection committee composed of representatives of TI national chapters. Candidates are considered for the positive impact of their actions on the level of corruption in their respective countries. Valid nominations were received from more than 40 countries and every continent.

The shortlisted candidates are:

Dr Dora Akunyili, a Nigerian citizen and Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration, selected for her determination to stamp out corrupt practices in the import and manufacturing of drugs, cosmetics and food products in Nigeria.

Dr Milica Bisic from Bosnia-and-Herzegovina and Head of the Tax Administration in Republika Srpska, has fearlessly tackled a corrupt taxation system that benefited those who operated in a shadow economy but refused to pay their share of taxes. For the first time, the process of TI Integrity Award 2003 shortlist press release, 30 April 2003 - page 2 of 2 - forcible collection of taxes was applied to large businesses. Many have since been charged with tax evasion and have closed down.

Sua Rimoni Ah Chong, former Auditor General of Samoa, showed great determination to expose financial crime in the South Pacific region, and has been an inspiration in the battle to promote government and private sector accountability.

From India, Anna Hazare, a social activist who has been campaigning for more than 20 years to end corruption in the forestry sector and in government. Mr Hazare has fought relentlessly against hundreds of corruption cases, even publicly fasting and serving in jail for his beliefs. His relentless determination has made him a legend in India.

Greek sociologist and criminologist Dr Grigoris Lazos, who has made the fight against human trafficking and corruption his mission in life. Today, he is credited by Greek journalists and civil society organisations for almost single-handedly putting the issue of trafficking on the government's agenda and in mobilising civil society around this life-threatening issue.

Hanna Bogoryja Zakrzewska and Ernest Zozun, two Polish radio journalists who brought the issue of corruption to the airwaves. In July 2001 they launched a radio campaign aimed at counteracting bribery. Entitled "Stop! Corruption!" it involved a series of broadcasts aired in prime-time slots on Poland's most popular Public Radio channels. By explaining the phenomenon of every-day-bribery they were able to generate immense interest in the issue of corruption in Poland.

Two candidates will also be considered for posthumous recognition: Algerian investigative journalist Abdelhaï Beliardouh and Mozambican António Siba-Siba Macuácua, chairman of the country’s largest commercial bank, Astral. Both Beliardouh and Macuácua were tortured and lost their lives while investigating corruption in their countries.

In recognising Beliardouh and Macuácua, TI hopes to send a strong message to the international community of the need to support those who, under the threat of terror, continue to pursue the principles of integrity to bring justice and transparency into our lives.

A final announcement of the Integrity Awards winners 2003 will be made on 16 May 2003.

The TI Integrity Awards 2003 ceremony will take place on 25 May 2003. For more information please contact [email protected] or visit http://www.transparency.org/integrityawards/index.html.

A broadcast video of the TI Integrity Award 2003 winners will soon be available on request.

The 11th International Anti-Corruption Conference takes place in Seoul, Republic of Korea, on 25-28 May 2003. Confirmed participants include Mary Robinson, the former UN Commissioner for Human Rights, Goh Kun, Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea, the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo, and Swiss theologian Hans Küng. The IACC is followed at the same venue in Seoul by the intergovernmental Global Forum III on Fighting Corruption and Safeguarding Integrity conference on 29-31 May 2003. To register for the 11th IACC, visit: Website: http://www.11iacc.org/iacc/index.html Email: [email protected]