Corruption is a
crosscutting issue not only in the public sector, but also for the
private sector and NGOs as well. For governmental institutions, it is
widespread in every ministry.
Theoretically, there
is the linkage between corruption and poverty.
Corrupted institutions in general could not provide appropriate
basic services to people and the public. It disturbs effective and
efficient allocation of resources and discourages people to work well.
It also affects the private sector, especially small businesses,
and development in general. Corruption
interrupts small business in Cambodia by adding to costs and creating
unfair competition in the business environment.
"Corruption is
defined as abuse of public or private office for personal gain".
This means any behavior in which people in the public or private sectors
improperly and unlawfully enrich themselves or those close to them, or
induce other to do so, by misusing their position.
Members of parliament
introduced the first draft law on anticorruption in 1994, but it was not
passed. Since then, the
Executive Branch has worked on several drafts, but the Council of
Ministers has not approved any one of these drafts. Without
implementation of an anti-corruption law, corruption is wide spread in
Cambodia, especially within the government institutions.
To cope with the
above-mentioned problems, the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC) with
assistance from external donors has developed an anti-corruption
program. It is one component of the GAP. The government understands that
low salaries are the main root of corruption.
Therefore, increasing the salaries of the government officials is
the first priority of the anti-corruption measures.
In general there is
no notable progress in either the short term or long term goals.
Short-term action
The anti-corruption
law is still under review and there has been no notable progress for the
last three years. The audit authority is being created and will be
operationalized in 2002, but it lacks independence from government.
Finally the sub-decree on procurement has not been notably revised, nor
has it been enforced.
Medium Term Action
Although the
Constitution supports the rights and freedom of the press, no specific
law on the rights and freedom of the press has been prepared.
In public procurement, there is no new legislation or measures to
promote efficiency, transparency, and accountability.
The public and media awareness program on corruption and
consequences of corruption was not made. The publication of fee for
basic service and educate about penalties for corruption activities was
not started.
In general,
anti-corruption did not have notable progress. A little action has been
made towards short-term goals, but there is no political will to
implement the reforms. In the long term, there is no sign of progress.
Further details of
progress
The progress report
in the matrix below was prepared by the General-Secretariat of the
Council for Administrative Reform (CAR) GAP monitoring unit in December
2001. The CAR received information on all reform areas in the GAP and
summarized its findings in the progress report. The NGO Forum has made
additional comments (in italics) to update the GAP progress report
through interviews with donors, experts and technical persons in the
field. The table gives more
details on progress in achieving the short-term (one year) and
medium-term (2-3 years) goals.
Progress in
Anti-Corruption*
|
Actions
to take |
Current
Status |
| Short-term
Action (1 year) |
|
| Prepare
and adopt an enforceable code of ethics for judges, in full
consultation with donors, NGOs and civil society. |
In
process
Part
of draft strategy for legal and judicial reform.
A
draft strategy was distributed to donors for comment in April
2002.** |
| Prepare
and adopt an enforceable code of ethics for public officials
(excluding judges) and elected officials, in full consultation
with donors, NGOs and civil society |
In
process
Underway,
consultations will be held before the end of the year. |
| Prepare
and submit to the National Assembly and Senate anti-corruption
legislation, that reflects a broad base consensus about its scope
and modalities. |
In
process
Draft
law has been prepared and is under review.
No
progress noted. The various draft laws have been prepared since
1994 but none of these drafts have been approved. The latest
version has been debated since 1998,but there is no sign that the
government has the political will to get it passed. |
| Operationalize
the National Assembly Audit Authority. |
Completed
Has
been established. Operating budget will be forthcoming as part of
Budget 2002
The
NAA has been established and operating budget is as a part of
budget 2002. However, there is lack of legal infrastructure,
experience and appropriate resources for implementation. |
| Review
arrangements for enforcing the sub-decree on public procurement,
prepare measures, improve the situation and start implementation. |
Have
not implemented
Capacity
of responsible units being systematically strengthened
There
is no improvement in public procurement except some benefit
sharing among those responsible.
There is no proper control mechanism of the process and no
specific penalty for the corrupt persons. Political will to
implement this reform appears to be lacking. |
| Medium
term (2-3 Years) |
|
| Prepare
and submit to the National Assembly legislation reaffirming the
right of freedom of the press and of information with provisions
guaranteeing conditions stated above. |
Have
not implemented
Freedom
of the press is guaranteed by the Constitution, it is more a
matter of developing a Code of Ethics.
Legislation
has not been prepared. The code of ethics should be developed by
the press association rather than by the government |
| Re-evaluate
the existing legal framework governing public procurement and
introduce legislation to promote efficiency, transparency, and
accountability, while curbing abuse in public procurement. |
Have
not implemented
Legal
formwork is adequate, capacity of responsible.
Units being strengthened
Public
procurement paper (including legal framework) was developed by ADB
but the problem is related to operational procedures.
There
are no clear operational procedures. Political will to implement
this reform appears to be lacking. |
| Develop
and implement a public and media awareness program on corruption
and the consequence of corruption.
|
Have
not implemented
Survey
on corruption will be widely disseminated.
Further
public and media awareness programs have not been planned.
This is an area in which NGOs could assist. |
| Investigate
ways and means to generalize publication of fees for basic public
service and educate the public about penalties for corrupt
activities |
In
process
Pilots
underway, part of Administrative Reform One Window Service
Delivery Initiative.
More
public consultation with civil society is required. |
| 3. Summary of NGO Involvement in the Sector
|
 |
|
Anti-corruption is an
area of concern to many NGOs, especially to those who work closely with
the government. A few NGOs
have made monitoring or research into corruption the focus of their
activities. NGOs are also
trying to address the need for better governance and transparency within
their own programs.
The Center for Social
Development has assisted the government in the drafting of the
anti-corruption law. It has
also conducted studies on the attitudes of Cambodians to corruption.
LIDHEE Khmer has
conducted a survey on corruption under a technical assistance grant from
the World Bank. The study became the background paper for preparation of
the anti-corruption reform.
The Khmer Human Rights
and Anti-Corruption Organisation educates the public about corruption, and
seeks to expose corruption wherever it occurs.
The Cambodian
Independent Watch Committee on Corruption (CIWCC) is composed of local
NGOs which have a strong will to help to reduce corruption in Cambodian
society.
The members of CIWCC
are (i) ADHOC, (ii) ANLWC,
(iii) CC, (iv) CCPCR, IDA, (v) CHRTF, (vi) CLO, (vii) DFKSI, (viii) IDA,
(ix) LICADHO, (x) KID , (xi) KHEMARA, (xii)KHRACO, (xiii) KKKHRA,
(xiv) KKKHRDA, (xv) LCJ, (xvi) LINKG, (xvii) USG (xviii) VIGILENCE, and (xix)
WFP.
The purpose of the
committee is to discus issues related to legal aspects as well as
practical issues in anti-corruption reform. It issues statements related
to anticorruption in Cambodia. The group is monitoring the government in
processing the anti-corruption law.
The biggest concern of
the CIWCC is the lack of transparency and corruption in public procurement
in Cambodia. It is concerned that the problem is related not only to the
government’s own budget, but to external assistance such as ADB and
World Bank funds as well.
Based on their
involvement in this reform area, NGOs would like to raise the following
issues concerning implementation of anti-corruption measures in the GAP:
-
The anti-corruption law
The
anti-corruption law is still in the process of being drafted. Various
draft laws were prepared since 1994, but none were sent to the National
Assembly to be approved. The draft laws have gone back and forward on the
same issues without consensus. The NGOs have complained that there is no
political commitment on the issues. Members
of the government want to exclude important elements of the draft law,
including the declaration of personal property before taking office.
-
Anti-corruption authority
NGOs
are concerned that the anti-corruption authority may be appointed by and
from the governmental bodies. NGOs have said that they want to have
independent authority (similar to that in Hong Kong and other countries)
rather than a para-government authority. The government appointed
authority would be dependent on the government and would face conflict of
interests.
-
Anti-corruption practice
Current
practice of anti-corruption activities is not appropriate because it does
not have an appropriate specific law. Without a law, it is based on the
personal judgment of the authorities, and not applied equally to both
associates of the authority and others.
-
Need for greater public awareness about corruption
Cambodians,
in general, do not strongly condemn those who steal public property,
although they are most concerned about private property. This behavior
relates to culture and the long history of corrupt practices in Cambodia.
Lack of public knowledge about corruption and its effects is an obstacle
to anti-corruption measures.
-
Current
problems regarding corruption
In
all sectors of government, corrupt payments are evident in the delivery of
almost all services and in the selection of staff for important positions.
However, it is most observable to NGOs in those sectors which serve
the public and in which NGOs are active.
In
the education sector, corruption is observable in the deployment of staff,
who have to pay large sums to get the posting of their choice.
Corruption is still observable in the examination process, with
large sums being paid for university and college entrance. Despite the elimination of school entry fees for primary and
secondary schools, students still make informal daily or monthly payments
to their teachers.
In
the health sector, health staff continue to demand unofficial fees, with
patients sometimes dying when they are unable to pay.
While the problem of drug supply in the public health system has
been improved, the prices of drugs continue to be very high, suggesting
continued corruption in the procurement system.
-
Debate on corruption issues
It
is often said that administrative reform and payment of fair salaries will
eradicate corruption. It is
true that without appropriate salaries, corruption will continue.
Many government officials are opposed to the introduction of an
anti-corruption law because they are afraid that the legal system is too
weak and that the law will not be applied equally.
However, corruption is currently evident at all levels of
government, including especially among the very rich.
There is no reason for thinking that higher salaries will remove
deeply entrenched habits and practices.
It is therefore necessary to compliment higher salaries with stiff
anti-corruption measures and extensive public and civil servant education
to change cultural behaviors.
-
Good governance in the NGO sector (see also under Public
Administrative Reform)
NGOs
have advantages over government in implementing good governance due to
their ability to pay living wages, the small size of their operations, and
the competitive environment in which they compete for donor funding.
Nevertheless, they operate in the same cultural and legal
environment as does the government, and problems remain.
Measures to improve governance in the NGO sector have included the
promotion of a Code of Ethics for NGOs and its dissemination during annual
NGO Fairs, training programs in financial and organizational management,
and discussions and workshops promoting the role of NGO boards.
Many local NGOs in Cambodia currently do not have properly
functioning boards. Many NGOs
undergo regular financial audits by internationally recognized independent
auditors, but more could do so. Some
NGO boards have instigated special audits when management problems have
come to light.
| 5. Recommendations |
|
|
Recommendations to
Government:
-
Speed up the process of approval of the anti-corruption law, which
the Ministry of Parliament Relations and Inspection has drafted since
1998. This law should be
promulgated by the end of 2002 with extensive consultation with civil
society.
-
Pass a law on declaration of assets by government employees.
-
In the absence of an anti-corruption law, anti-corruption measures
in the UNTAC code detailing penalties for “embezzlement by public
officials”, “corruption” and “bribery” should be enforced.
-
Disseminate information to the public through the media and involve
civil society in pubic consultations on the anti-corruption issues.
-
Take immediate measures to improve and enforce public procurement
procedures, in order that noticeable changes can be monitored by the end
of 2002.
-
Inclusion of community representatives on institutions such as
Health Center Management Committees can help reduce corruption at the
local level.
-
The parliament should discuss the checks and balances in the three
top institutions: the legislator, the executive and the judiciary.
Executive control of the judiciary and legislature should be eliminated.
-
Political parties should give members of parliament the freedom to
discuss and debate problems related to the national interest without fear
of dismal from the party and parliament.
Recommendations to
Donors:
-
Support government and NGOs to speed up the process of approval of
the anti-corruption law.
-
Donors should be actively involved in third party monitoring, to
ensure proper use of funds.
-
Donors should make progress in anti-corruption measures a key
condition for continued assistance.
-
Donors should not restore support to higher education until the
problems of corruption, including corruption in higher education entry,
are properly addressed.
Recommendations
to NGOs:
-
NGOs should participate in the process of monitoring of the GAP
regarding anti-corruption activities.
-
NGOs should play an active role in anti-corruption awareness
programs and educating the public about the problems caused by corruption.
-
The best contribution NGOs can make is to set a good example of
good governance themselves. Measures
should include training in proper financial and organizational management,
further dissemination of a Code of Ethics for NGOs, and strengthening the
role of NGO boards. NGO peak
bodies should study examples of self-regulation in the NGO sector from
other countries and devise appropriate strategies for improving governance
of the NGO sector in Cambodia.
|