This article hits the nail on the head – so all the laws, regulations and bodies are there, but corruption is still there and sometimes doesn’t seem to slow down.

It seems that almost every week OECD releases their anti-corruption reporting and most times, there are mainly issues that are important, but not truly serious.

It was a bit of surprise to see that the UN has recognized the harmful impact of corruption on human rights, which hadn’t happened earlier.   Corruption Watch  has highlighted a resolution that was adopted by the UN General Assembly in July, titled “The negative impact of corruption on the enjoyment of human rights”.

One area that is always a challenge when trying to address corruption is whether the judges are corrupt. The Global Press Journal highlights the ongoing challenges, even when there is a complex system to avoid seemingly corrupt judges.

Arms dealing and corruption seem to go hand in hand, and unfortunately, as the world presently is a more dangerous place, we should not stop discussing the issues.

Switzerland is finally considering joining a British-led international task force targeting kleptocrats and recovering stolen assets. Reuters noted that after “a meeting with David Lammy (UK’s foreign secretary) discussed the International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre with the Swiss government during a visit earlier this month.”

So much of Ukraine’s anti-corruption has been tied to anti-corruption CSOs and activist that we forget about the importance of investigative journalist in corruption reporting. The EU Neighbors East  highlights an activity which brings anti-corruption journalism information to many communities in Ukraine.

This article, by the US Appalachian News Express, reminds us that even in developed countries, the old fashioned corruption of money for services exists no matter how developed we believe the systems to be. Additionally, it involved a whistleblower who ended up being fired, which is still not resolved.

This article, by the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier , is cautiously optimistic, though it shows how anti-corruption efforts work in Papua New Guinea (PNG), as well as in most countries.

What always surprises me is that so many government officials feel that they will get away with corrupt behaviors. Year after year government officials worldwide find themselves arrested and yet, they simply don’t seem to learn.

Just in case we thought that corruption in New York city was gone, since Mayor Eric Adam’s pay-for-play corruption dismissals earlier this year, there are new allegations against Eric Adams’ previous chief advisor, Ms. Lewis-Martin.

The two approaches regarding corruption are either prevention or enforcement and the hope always is that prevention can slow most people down so that there is less need for enforcement.

Sadly, this topic doesn’t seem to want to die. PoliticoEU noted that even though when the war in Ukraine began and there were very large sanctions against Russian oligarchs, whose money was considered to come from corrupt and sanctions actions, were still being defended by prestigious law firms in the UK.

This article, from The Hill , touches on a issue that in not simply rooted in the US system,  but one addressing an issue of corruption in public service.

Over the past six months, it has felt that corruption in the US has grown incrementally, without any checks on it. It seems to have had tentacles, though most of it has come from the American Executive Branch. 

Sometimes there is some good news, coming from unlikely places. In Albania the Special Structure against Corruption and Organised Crime (SPAK) has for the past few years, going forward and bringing cases and arresting former and present government officials.

Arms sales are areas of much corruption in the world and it’s good to see that there is cross border cooperation between Bulgaria and Ukraine.

This article is a vivid reminder of why corruption is so difficult to stop, as well as highlighting why whistleblowers are also unsung heroes. In this case The Guardian describes a scheme, that was brought to light in 2010, which took 14 years to bring to trial, and was a kickback scheme from the start, with the UK Ministry of Defense providing cover for its contractor.

Again, the US is back in the news, not for leading on anti-corruption, but for weakening human rights reporting obligations. The Intercept  just reported on changes to reporting by the US Department of State, specifically to the  “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.”

One area that is important for countries which have seaports is how to address and understand corruption as it occurs in these environments.  Consultancy.eu describes an EU project, POSEIDON, which has recently ended, and includes solutions to the serious issues of corruption and organized crime in European port operations in the Netherlands.