WASHINGTON, 27 June 2023 – Speaking Monday at the Anticorruption for Development Global Forum in Washington, DC, OSCE PA Vice-President and Special Representative on Fighting Corruption Irene Charalambides (Cyprus) highlighted the role of the media in raising public awareness about corruption and its consequences.
At its finest, she said, investigative journalism shines a light on corruption and exposes nefarious individuals and organizations who betray the public trust. To ensure that journalism can fulfill this function, she said, it is essential that journalists and media organizations are free from undue influence and provided the necessary legal protections in taking on powerful interests. Special Representative Charalambides also highlighted the need to bridge the gap between policy and practice, as too often anti-corruption laws and strategies are poorly implemented, and stressed the important role played by international institutions and watchdogs in this field.
She noted that citizens bear significant costs due to corrupt practices, and therefore look to parliamentarians to set a framework of laws that not only curtail corruption but protect whistleblowers and journalists. Parliaments are very well equipped for this battle, she said, stressing that interparliamentary co-operation can also play a major role, including by sharing best practices and upholding international commitments.
In this regard, she referred to PA events that have focused on this issue, including the two-day international conference on “Combating Corruption, Defending Democracy: the Role of National Parliaments” held in Cyprus on 27-28 May 2022, and the Parliamentary Web Dialogue “Parliamentarians & Journalists: Partners Against Corruption,” held on 14 October 2020.
This week’s conference in Washington, taking place 26-27 June, was held under the theme “Restoring Trust,” and was hosted by the World Bank’s Governance Global Practice, co-hosted by the Agency for International Development, the UN, Transparency International, as well as several other organizations.
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