UN moot adopts Pakistan’s resolution against graft

Initiative highlights role parliaments can play in the campaign against corruption

ISLAMABAD: The eighth session of the Conference of the States Parties (CoSP) of the UN Convention against Corruption has unanimously adopted a Pakistan-sponsored resolution on strengthening the role of parliaments in preventing and combating corruption.

The conference was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE, from Dec 16-20, said a press release received on Saturday. Pakistan’s initiative at the conference was in line with the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan to eliminate corruption and his focus on the issue in his address to the UN General Assembly.

The unanimous adoption of the resolution is a manifestation of the trust reposed by the international community in Pakistan’s leading role in the fight against corruption, the Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement.

The resolution calls on the states to enhance exchanges among parliamentary institutions for the promotion of good practices to strengthen the role of parliaments in their respective countries by enacting legislation and ensuring effective oversight.

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In this regard, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has been mandated to organise a thematic dialogue in collaboration with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) on strengthening the role of parliaments in combating corruption in all its forms.

The foreign ministry and the Pakistani mission in Vienna steered the process of consultations to achieve consensus on the resolution. A wide range of developing and developed countries from all geographical regions co-sponsored the resolution, including Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, China, Indonesia, Morocco, Nigeria, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore and Switzerland.

Pakistan’s initiative has brought the focus of the international community on the important role parliaments can play in the campaign against corruption, and would be useful in pushing for concerted action worldwide.

The United Nations Convention against Corruption is the only universal legal framework at the international level to prevent and combat corruption in all its forms. One hundred and eighty-six states are parties to the convention, including Pakistan, which joined the convention in 2007.