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W. Hemisphere nations evaluating anti-corruption monitoring mechanism

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EFE

The Western Hemisphere nations who signed the Lima Commitment at the last Summit of the Americas, held in April in Peru, on Wednesday are meeting in the Peruvian capital to evaluate a mechanism for monitoring the implementation of the anti-corruption measures that each nation undertook.

At the meeting, Peruvian Deputy Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela emphasized the situation facing the region, which is saying “No more corruption.”

“We have approved what could be called an Alliance of the Americas against Corruption, which has as its central element cooperation among countries to prevent impunity,” he said.

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Along those lines, he said that cooperation among states is “a central aspect” of the fight against corruption, within the framework of the Lima Commitment known as the “Democratic Governance against Corruption.”

“If we all assiduously cooperate in the fight against corruption, in specific cases, we’re going to prevent corrupt (officials) from evading the law,” he said.

The Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG), which includes the 33 nations who signed the Lima Commitment, has on its agenda considering and approving the Monitoring and Implementation Mechanism, which is a virtual public access platform prepared by Peru’s Foreign Ministry.

On the virtual platform, countries will have to include the information about their level of compliance with the 57 points contained in the Lima Commitment, including ways to prevent corruption in public contracts and election campaign financing.

In addition, it will contain a listing of best practices and technical elements so that the public may transparently view the progress states make in fighting corruption.

The meeting comes within Peru’s particular political context, given that the Odebrecht corruption scandal has tainted the last four presidents - Alejandro Toledo, Alan Garcia , Ollanta Humala and Pedro Pablo Kuczynski - all of whom are under investigation for allegedly taking bribes.

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