It has been 10 years since Transparency International presented the National Integrity System assessment on Curacao’s vulnerabilities to corruption. The organization published an impressive report in 2013 with a list of recommendations and targeted measures. A group of people involved in the structuring of the report decided to found the civil movement Transparent Course Foundation after the publication of the report.
The group wanted to prevent the report’s recommendations from disappearing into a drawer. We are exactly 10 years later. Where are we today? The Transparency Course will draw attention in the coming months to the findings and recommendations from the report from that time and will take a look at how we are progressing from the current situation. Today we begin with a review of the research results. Transparency International considers that preventing and combating corruption in a country requires a comprehensive approach. It is about the interaction of different institutional actors, their activities and the interaction between them. From this perspective, Transparency International has evaluated 14 crucial pillars that make up the institutional landscape of Curacao (see attached table). The investigation identified both strong pillars and weak ones in Curacao’s national integrity system. The report offers an in-depth focus on the resilience and effectiveness, of institutions and different sectors, in preventing and combating corruption and promoting transparency and integrity.
Integrity system
The 14 pillars evaluated during the investigation include among others Parliament, Government, the justice system, government agencies, public order agencies, political parties, media and the private sector. Each pillar was assessed on three important aspects that influence the capacity to prevent corruption: overall capacity, governance and internal procedures and the overall picture in the integrity system as a whole. From each pillar, they mapped out both the legal framework and regulations, as well as the implementation in practice.
Strong and Weak Pillars
In 2013, according to Transparency International, the judiciary, Ombudsman and control and supervision bodies were identified as strong pillars in the integrity system of Curaçao. Generally, these organizations were considered reliable, but their effectiveness was hampered by deities in other pillars. On the other hand, political parties, public sector and media were identified as weak pillars, which had a negative influence on the integrity system of Curaçao. A crucial aspect that was highlighted was the lack of transparency and accountability of political parties. Funding of political parties was considered insufficiently regulated, resulting in them scoring low on the topic of transparency for this pillar. To reestablish public confidence in the political process, the importance of promoting transparency and accountability in party financing was emphasized. In addition, the investigation highlighted the challenges of the public sector regarding integrity.
The strong influence that the executive branch has on appointments and policy decisions has been assessed as an obstacle to the effective functioning of the public sector. Both hands-on action by the executive and inaction can limit the ability of the public sector to function effectively. To guarantee integrity in the public sector, it was recommended to address these issues. Another pillar that according to Transparency International needed to be addressed was media. The importance of a critical and independent press in denouncing abuses and also informing the public, was considered essential. He emphasized the need for more qualified (investigative) journalists, the importance of reducing dependence on private financing and advertising revenue in order to guarantee the independence of the media. In addition to the findings regarding strong and weak parties, the report also mentions many vulnerabilities in other pillars, such as the weak legal basis of the electoral council and the lack of financial resources in the police service and judicial instances.
Recommendations for the future
Based on the results, Transparency International proposed the following four (4) main recommendations. The course should urgently ratify the United Nations Convention against Corruption and develop an action plan to guarantee the implementation and follow-up of this convention. All sectors in the community should focus on increasing levels of transparency in their activities, internal procedures and sources of funding. Political parties, specifically, should address this with urgency. The government should give priority to funding and capacity building of the judiciary to allow them to investigate and take action on cases that are submitted to the control and supervision bodies. Given the overall role that the public sector plays, the government should commit itself to greater independence and a sense of responsibility in the public sector, following principles of good governance and ensuring that all internal mechanisms for accountability and promoting integrity are in place. The implementation of this mechanism should be monitored and sanctioned as necessary.