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Bangladesh 247 H. Malavé Mata, Los Extravíos del Poder: Euforia en Venezuela: Balance y Perspectiva en el y Crisis del Populismo en Venezuela (Caracas: Marco de la nueva Administración pública’, Universidad Central de Venezuela, 1987). VII International Congress of CLAD on State H. Njam, La Corrupción, un Problema de Estado Reform and Public Administration, Lisbon, (Caracas: Universidad Metropolitana, 2008). 8–11 October 2002; available at www.unpan1. O. Ochoa, ‘La Economía Venezolana 2006– un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/ 2007: Crecimiento, Infl ación y Corrupción’, CLAD/clad0044108.pdf. Analítica, vol. 12 (2006). TI Venezuela: www.transparencia.org.ve. W. Pérez Parra, ‘La Lucha contra la Corrupción 6.3 Asia and the Pacifi c Bangladesh Corruption Perceptions Index 2008: 2.1 (147th out of 180 countries) Conventions ADB–OECD Anti-Corruption Action Plan for Asia Pacifi c (endorsed November 2001) UN Convention against Corruption (acceeded February 2007) ● Legal and institutional changes On 15 July 2007 the Public Procurement Act (Amendment) 2007 was passed. The amend- ● The Anti-Corruption Commission (Staffs) ment brings procurement for any foreign Service Rules 2008 were approved by the gov- or development/cooperative organisation ernment and came into effect on 15 June 2007. under the jurisdiction of the act. On 28 They were prepared by the commission in January 2008 the Public Procurement Rules order to impose these rules upon the commis- 2008 were enacted to ensure the transparency sion staff, while earlier efforts by the previous and accountability of the process, including government were considered by stakeholders project tender and approval, the execution of including civil society organisations to be work and civil servant duties.2 detrimental to their independence.1 ● The Local Government Commission 1 Bangladesh Gazette, SRO no. 147-Act/2008, 15 June 2008. 2 Bangladesh Gazette, SRO no. 21-Act/2008, 28 January 2008. 248 Country reports: Asia and the Pacifi c Ordinance 2008 was promulgated on 13 May terror attacks, have been made non-bailable 2008 in order to institutionalise the decen- offences.8 tralisation and empowerment of local govern- ● On 8 June 2008 the government promulgated ment.3 The ordinance establishes a permanent the Truth and Accountability Commission local government commission to oversee Ordinance 2008.9 The ordinance provides the decentralisation process while ensuring clemency for corrupt individuals on the basis accountability and transparency in local gov- of voluntary disclosure and confession of ernment institutions. guilt, subject to the confi scation of illegally ● The National Identity Registration Authority amassed wealth and property. Those granted Ordinance 2008 was promulgated on 15 May clemency are to be barred from election to 2008 to facilitate the establishment of the public offi ce for fi ve years. The ordinance will national identity registration authority.4 The not apply to those already convicted. main objective of the national identity card ● To ensure transparency and accountability is to establish a digital database for prepar- in local government elections, the Election ing a credible voter list, in order to eliminate Commission approved the City Corporation false voting and track the records of crimi- (Election Ethics) Rules 2008 and the Powrasava nal offences. The national identity card will (Election Ethics) Rules 2008 on 17 June 2008.10 also facilitate transparency in transactions for The rules include provisions to disclose basic various utility services. general information regarding candidates, ● On 16 June 2008 the government amended such as sources of income, assets and liabili- the Supreme Judicial Commission Ordinance ties, election expenses and their source, and 2008.5 Some years earlier, on 2 December any criminal records. 1999, the Appellate Division of the Supreme ● On 18 June 2008 the Council of Caretaker Court had given twelve directives to the Advisors approved in principle the Right to government in a landmark judgment in the Information Ordinance 2008.11 This ordinance Masdar Hossain case on the separation of would mark a signifi cant victory for civil the judiciary (see the Global Corruption Report society organisations in Bangladesh, which 2007 and 2008). The previous two govern- have long advocated such a law as a prerequi- ments delayed implementing the directives site for ensuring transparency, accountability as many as twenty-eight times. This devel- and good governance. The draft law was cir- opment represents the most signifi cant step culated for public discourse and response – a towards achieving full independence of the unique move in the Bangladeshi context, as judiciary.6 laws have traditionally been passed with no ● On 11 June 2008 the Anti-Terrorism Ordinance engagement with citizens.12 2008 was promulgated.7 Under this ordinance ● The Money Laundering Prevention Ordinance a wide range of crimes, including money- 2008 provides that the courts will not take laundering, arms-running and fi nancing into consideration any money-laundering case 3 Bangladesh Gazette, Ordinance no. 15/2008, 13 May 2008. 4 Bangladesh Gazette, Ordinance no. 18/2008, 15 May 2008. 5 Bangladesh Gazette, Ordinance nos. 6/2008 and 29/2008, 16 June 2008. 6 New Nation (Bangladesh), 1 November 2007. 7 Bangladesh Gazette, Ordinance no. 28/2008, 11 June 2008; Daily Star (Bangladesh), 19 May 2008. 8 Daily Star (Bangladesh), 13 June 2008. 9 Bangladesh Gazette, Ordinance no. 27/2008, 8 June 2008. 10 Election Commission Secretariat, Government of Bangladesh, Bangladesh Gazette, 17 June 2008. 11 Daily Star (Bangladesh), 19 June 2008. 12 Daily Star (Bangladesh), 24 March 2008. Bangladesh 249 84.6 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 Percentage 20 12.3 3.1 10 0 Asset stripping Fraud Abuse of power Forms of corruption Figure 11: Forms of corruption in the private sector, 2007 without the sanction of the Anti-Corruption in the private sector. In 2006 it was considered Commission. In addition, this ordinance will very corrupt, accounting for between 3.1 and 5 allow the Bangladesh Bank to seek coop- per cent of reported cases. In 2007 the private eration with fi nancial intelligence units of sector was a key actor in one-sixth of corrup- other countries or provide them with similar tion reports published in the print media.16 support. That year the most dominant form of private sector corruption was asset stripping (84.6 per Corruption in the private sector cent), followed by fraud and abuse of power (see fi gure 11). Bangladesh’s private sector is rapidly becoming a key source of economic growth and employ- Despite the adoption of the Public Procurement ment generation. In the fi scal year 2006/7 the Act 2006 and the Ordinance in 2007, the private private sector’s share of investments in the sector has reportedly continued to engage in mal- economy was 23 per cent of a total Tk1137.3 practices in the procurement process. According crore.13 The 2008/9 Global Competitiveness Report to the Planning Commission’s Implementation, ranks Bangladesh 111th out of 134 countries, Monitoring and Evaluation Division, eighty- and 106th in terms of the effi ciency of its market fi ve contractors/companies/bidders faced puni- for goods.14 The 2007 Global Integrity Report also tive exclusion from the bidding process on ranks Bangladesh as being weak in business account of fraudulent practices and collusive licensing and regulation.15 activities.17 In common with every other sector, however, In one case in 2008, a container handling con- the private sector has been affected by wide- tract was awarded at two container depots in spread corruption. TI Bangladesh’s Corruption Dhaka and Chittagong to a company favoured Database illustrates the propensity of corruption by politically powerful individuals, although 13 Ministry of Finance, Bangladesh Economic Review 2007–08 (Dhaka: Ministry of Finance, 2007). 14 M. E. Porter and K. Schwab, Global Competitiveness Report 2008–2009 (Geneva: World Economic Forum, 2008). 15 Global Integrity, Global Integrity Report 2007 (Washington, DC: Global Integrity, 2008); available at report.global- integrity.org. 16 Other key actors were government offi cials in 58.6 per cent of cases, and NGOs and others in 7.8 per cent. 17 Central Procurement Technical Unit, www.cptu.gov.bd. 250 Country reports: Asia and the Pacifi c it lacked both the experience and skills to do Bureau Veritas BIVAC (Bangladesh) Limited and the job. The allegations included the violation Intertek Testing Limited. On 20 March 2008 the of tender conditions through the misuse of concerned port authority cancelled the agree- power.18 In another such case, the Barapukuria ment with Cotecna due to its involvement in coal mine operation contract was awarded to a ‘massive irregularities’.22 Chinese company that allegedly engaged in col- lusive bidding with politically powerful individ- Large-scale allegations of fraud and corruption uals, involving a fi nancial loss of Tk1.58 billion by PSI companies have centred on allegations of to the public exchequer.19 incorrect declarations, under- and over-invoic- ing, the provision of HS codes for less than the Exports and imports valuation and the fraudulent certifi cation of con- signments.23 In order to avoid higher tax liabili- Chittagong port is Bangladesh’s main gateway ties, importers gain the assistance of PSI agencies for exports and imports, dealing with 65 to 70 to falsify the real value of imports by manipu- per cent of the country’s export/import trade. It lating or hiding their real