Op-Ed: Civil Society and Technology Raise Anticorruption Standards by Ambassador Lisa Kubiske

December 7, 2012

On December 9, the world celebrates International Anticorruption Day. This day provides an occasion to reflect on Honduras' progress in the fight against corruption and the critical role of civil society in preserving and furthering reform efforts.

Around the world, civil society is fighting corruption in increasingly innovative ways. Non-governmental organizations, with the help of the private sector and the government, are doing ground-breaking work to measure the costs of corruption and to monitor progress on government reform efforts. Through new technologies that protect confidentiality, civil society organizations are empowering ordinary citizens to speak out against corruption without fear of retribution. Using web technologies implemented by domestic and international non-governmental organizations in countries such as Indonesia, Slovakia, and India, citizens use online forms and cell phone technology to anonymously report incidences of bribery. The website, http://www.ipaidabribe.com is just one example. Using free open-source software, non-governmental organizations bring civil society and technology together to revolutionize data collection on corruption. This data reminds public officials that corruption does not go unnoticed, uncovers the magnitude of corruption in a country, and sheds light on the high costs citizens bear as a result of impunity.

In Honduras, the U.S. Embassy works with local partners to promote civil society's role in projects that seek to increase transparency and attack corruption. USAID's Democracy and Governance program, with the help of Asociación para una Sociedad más Justa (ASJ) and Transparency International, have created an Anticorruption Legal Assistance Center (ALAC) so Honduran citizens can anonymously report acts of corruption either in person or on the web at http://www.alachonduras.com. The center also provides free legal advice to victims and witnesses of corruption. ASJ's objective is to improve the responsiveness of government institutions to citizen reports and raise the standard for government accountability.

Because government administrations come and go, civil society must ensure that new administrations are accountable to increasingly higher expectations of transparency and accountability. While reducing corruption in public management ultimately depends on the political will and good managerial oversight by government institutions, it is not just the government's responsibility. Civil society helps ensure that existing reforms do not disappear during political transitions. Often it is civil society that brings the country's challenges with corruption and impunity to the attention of domestic and international audiences, an additional level of scrutiny and accountability. The United States encourages all members of civil society in Honduras to be actors in their country's own future by promoting reforms that raise the bar for anticorruption and transparency efforts. Working together we can ensure that corruption has no place in Honduras' future.