The head of South Korea’s anticorruption body said Monday the country would support the implementation of the United Nations’ Convention against Corruption at an international conference of the state parties.

The convention, which went into effect on Dec. 14, 2005, provides standards for countries to develop anticorruption policies and to improve their legal and regulatory regime to fight corruption, according to the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission. It took effect in Korea on April 26, 2008.

“The Korean government will remain committed to the implementation of the UNCAC by sharing our experience and lessons learned in the fight against corruption with countries all over the world,” ACRC chief Lee Sung-bo said at the sixth session of the conference held in St. Petersburg. The meeting will be held from Nov. 2-6.

Lee said the state parties had made “notable progress” to realize the convention’s goal. He introduced Korea’s recent efforts to fight corruption, including the introduction of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act ― which put criminal liability on both the conferrer and the recipient of the graft ― and revision of the Act on the Protection of Public Interest Whistleblowers to better protect those who report internal wrongdoings.

The conference brought together some 1,500 delegates of the states, along with representatives of international organizations and civil societies. It will discuss how to improve the process for implementing the convention, which was agreed upon in 2009 in Doha, the capital city of Quatar. 

By Yoon Min-sik
(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)