Sergei Zlotnikov, Executive Director, Transparency Kazakhstan
Please tell us about Transparency International and how long has it been active in Kazakhstan?
Transparency International has been active for almost 15 years. It was founded by a team of people that had previously worked for the World Bank. For more than a decade the organization was managed and directed by the well known activist Peter Aigen. From the outset Transparency International has talked about the global nature of corruption. It has argued that corruption makes people poor, depriving them of their right to fair and incorrupt administration, destroying ethical standards in the community, and undermining principles of fair business conduct. In 2003 the UN adopted the Convention against Corruption, to a large extend by Transparency International. More than 130 countries have joined this Convention so far. Today, Transparency International is active in 96 countries.
The Justice Ministry registered our organization as a social fund in September 1999. In 2000, at an international conference of Transparency International in Canada we were accredited as Transparency International’s national chapter in Kazakhstan. The initiators of our organization in Kazakhstan were prominent lawyers, human rights advocates, social activists, and various specialists.
Corruption, unless it is actively countered, will negatively affect any efforts at administrative, social or economic reforms. From the very beginning of our activities it has been our aim to consult with government agencies, business and society on ways of fighting corruption, carrying out anticorruption researches, publishing articles, and providing information on anticorruption activities as well as acquiring and using international and above all European Experience in fighting corruption.
Please describe the activities of Transparency Kazakhstan.
In 2001 we created our web-site www.transparencykazakhstan.org. Today, it is a powerful Internet resource with 30 GB of information covering corruption related researches and materials. During the last six months 88 000 users have visited our web-site, half of whom were from Kazakhstan and the rest from 50 different countries.
We have created an anti-corruption library. Moreover, we were the first to raise the question of the urgent need for an anticorruption expertise of both existing laws and draft bills.
We initiated the research project “Courts without corruption”, which was supported by the Open Society Institute and Soros Foundation. The administration of the President of Kazakhstan, the Supreme Court, the Interior Ministry, and the General Prosecutor’s office also cooperated in this project. The resulting research gave an objective insight into the judicial system of Kazakhstan at the time, including the quality of investigations, the Bar, the public prosecution service, the independence of courts, laws and law application practices.
The results of the project were taken into consideration in upgrading the judicial machinery. I have personally participated in a plenary session of the Supreme Court and in a working group.
The session was adopting a regulatory resolution of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan on “Examination by courts of criminal cases involving corruption”.
In 2005 we developed a course of study and published a textbook “Basics on Preventing Corruption” in Kazakh, Russian and English languages. The ministry of Education and Science of the RK has recommended this manual as education manual for students of economic and law faculties. The Justice Ministry recognized it as the best judicial textbook of the year. Meanwhile the course of study was introduced in 30 universities of Kazakhstan. As requested by the Council of Foreign Investors, we have been providing consultations and delivering materials to devise a Code of Ethics of Foreign Investors in Kazakhstan. We conduct training sessions and researches that cover the development of corporate governance and bringing down administrative barriers to business.
In 2006 Kazakhstan the first country in the CIS to amnesty illegal guest workers based on the conclusions and recommendations of our research “Corruption and Illegal Migration”.
Government agencies have requested various studies from us, including one on how to curb the shadow economy.
What were your suggestions on weakening the influence of the shadow economy in Kazakhstan?
The only way of weakening the scope of the impact of the shadow economy in Kazakhstan is to create a favorable economic environment and to eliminate all existing barriers that hinder business and economic development. It is essential to improve the systems monitoring the performance of civil servants, existing legislation and the judicial system.
In 2003, the Civic Foundation “Transparency Kazakhstan”, the Almaty Association of entrepreneurs, and the Center for International Private Enterprise (USA), carried out a research project “Measuring Corruption in Private Sector in Kazakhstan”. According to its findings, the most important factors contributing to corruption are administrative barriers and all sorts of red tape; complications and obstacles artificially created by government authorities and agencies, which businessmen are faced with when trying to do business. We have worked out some recommendations to implement a strategy of combating the shadow economy, which would be based on the following principles.
- it is essential to streamline and limit the powers of officials in order to decrease levels of bribery. Public control over civil servants should be reinforced;
- the discovery and punishment of corrupt officials should not be an end in itself, instead it is necessary to form negative public opinion about the shadow economy and corruption, and to remove weak spots or mechanisms which would encourage corruption;
- reformation of the system at the macroeconomic and structural levels should be linked to the reduction of government influence on business and the creation of fair competition and fixed game rules.
What are your initiatives for 2008?
In 2008 for first time in Kazakhstan, Transparency Kazakhstan together with Transparency International Secretariat establish an Advocacy and Legal Advice Centres (ALAC) supported by the European Community.
Two hot lines will be launched in Almaty and Astana this year, so that people ca report corruption related cases even anonymously. Such facilities are already operating successfully in 12 countries with emerging markets.
We intend to help individuals and business, victims and witnesses of corruption to file complaints to government agencies. The aim is to provide people who are affected by corruption with relevant information and legal advice.
We will be exerting efforts to make government agencies consider corruption case studies reported to the Centre we will reveal weak links or mechanisms in the system that enable corruption to thrive (for instance gaps in legislation or the sphere administration that apply in general to the cases).
We will also draw up recommendations fro government authorities (of legal, administrative and institutional nature) to improve legislation aimed at fighting corruption.
What whishes do you have for WM readers?
Although one of my favorite motors is “lack of resources is your most important resource”, I would like to whish all readers to always have enough resources for everything.
World Monitor, EUROBAK
February, 2008
Translation from Russian language had been
made by editorial office of EUROBAK
