‘Endemic’ is probably the best word to describe corruption in the Middle East. From Iraq to Morocco the bane of corruption pervades in all sectors of public and private life and remains the main impediment to real political, economic, and social progress in the region. Recently, we have seen efforts by many regional governments and NGOs to stamp out corruption and increase transparency across public and private sectors. These recent steps are viewed by many as a wider acknowledgement pertaining to the severity of the situation in the region. Others, however, see these new steps being taken as merely cosmetic and being taken in order to draw attention away from the deeply rooted issues pervading in Middle Eastern societies that relate to the make-up of governments in the region.
The cold, hard truth
Transparency International (TI), the global organization that monitors corruption and transparency, recently published its Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) that ranks global corruption levels according to multiple parameters on a scale of one to ten. Out of the 18 countries ranked in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) only five scored above 5.0, indicative of a severe and widespread corruption problem in the region. Qatar (28th worldwide) and the United Arab Emirates (35th worldwide) lead the pack with scores of 6.5 and 5.9 respectively for both nations representing an increase over the last year. However, according to a statement released by TI, these results are somewhat ambiguous as there is a perceived notion that they could be the result of rapid economic development driven by the petrodollar. “It remains to be seen whether this improvement, particularly in the oil and gas-rich Gulf states, is due to the increased political will to fight corruption, or whether the negative effects of corruption are being masked by large surpluses which are fueling rapid economic development,” the organization wrote.
However, it is appropriate to give credit where credit is due. There has been a recent string of high-profile executive arrests across the GCC involving corrupt executives, predominately in the private sector. These moves are seen by many as a signs of progress in the fight against corporate corruption in the GCC. “In this respect, there is a serious effort to tackle corruption in the GCC,” stated Salah Al-Ghazali, chairman of the Kuwait Transparency Society. Congruent with TI’s assessments, Qatar and the UAE are at the forefront of these developments. The UAE has arrested several executives in its leading real estate companies, such as Tamweel and Sama Dubai, and has questioned employees at Nakheel. And in mid-October Interpol handed over a former diplomat and general manager of an undisclosed company to the Qatari authorities for embezzlement of $20 million.
Making it look clean
Even though these arrests are a sign of a wider willingness in the region to deal with some elements of corruption, the impetus for these arrests are financial in nature and do not seem to extend past the appeasement of foreign investors. When asked whether this was the reason for the crackdown on corporate criminals, Khalil Gebara, secretary general of Arab Region Parliamentarians Against Corruption and co-executive director of the Lebanese Transparency Association, replied, “Exactly, when the cost of doing business is high because of corruption the rulers of the GCC have a personal interest to do something about it. Investors need assurances that they are investing in a place where documents are accurate.”
Indeed, the notion that corruption has become typical of Middle Eastern societies’ laws and political framework is widely held to be true, even though many countries in the region have laws that criminalize acts of corruption. “In terms of criminal legislation most of the laws are there, about 80% if not more,” said Arkan El-Seblani, legal specialist at the United Nations’ Program on Governance in the Arab Region (POGAR). “Corruption goes beyond crimes and criminal acts. Rather it is about setting the laws and the institutional frameworks for the prevention of corruption,” he said. Moreover, 16 countries in the region have signed and ratified the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), although the implementation of this convention has been slow to come into effect. “These things take time,” El-Seblani cautioned, “it’s not a one shot thing that happens in a year or two.” Al-Ghazali agreed, saying “when we compare the articles of the UNCAC to the actual laws of the state of Kuwait we find that an enormous gap persists, especially in areas dealing with fighting corruption and financial disclosure.”
Systemic weaknesses
The disparity between corruption on the ground in the Middle East and the legislative apparatus to address it is striking, to say the least. It is not only the laws of the region, or lack thereof, which are facilitating the perpetuation of corruption, but also the makeup of legislative authorities in the region. “If the executive appoints the judiciary; the judiciary will fear the executive,” explained Gebara, “and they will be more receptive to political pressure because they are worried about their next post.” The main pitfalls in regional legislation stick out like a sore thumb. The lack of essential legislation to protect persons who expose corruption is seen as an enormous impediment to winning the fight against corruption. One of the most conspicuous shortcomings in regional legislation is the lack of ‘whistleblower’ or witness protection that safeguards persons who expose corruption. In spite of the fact that the UNCAC obliges signatories to “provide effective protection from potential retaliation or intimidation for witnesses and experts who give testimony concerning offenses,” little is has been done by regional governments to address or implement appropriate legal infrastructure to deal with the issue. “I don’t think that there is any legislation in the region that is specifically dedicated to this issue … there are no legal and adequate institutional frameworks to support this and governments don’t really recognize the full scope of what is required to establish such systems” El-Seblani said.
For countries in the region that do not have rapid economic advancement the issue of corruption becomes even more ubiquitous and eventually becomes a characteristic of the social fabric. Lebanon is a prime example of such a country, achieving the rank of the 102nd (down from 99th in 2007) least corrupt country worldwide, according to TI. It is a widely accepted that corruption in Lebanon permeates through every level of society from petty bribery to political and legislative corruption in the highest echelons of government. According to Gebara, “It has become institutionalized in Lebanon.”
Gebara explained that since its inception, the lack of separation between political and economic power has always acted as a catalyst for corruption. Moreover, the sectarian nature of the Lebanese state makes rooting out corruption even more difficult since politicians have direct administration over their own constituencies, “so the result is that you don’t have an independent administration that is immune to political manipulation. You are left with a system where corruption becomes embedded in that system,” Gebara concluded.
The word corruption has become synonymous with characterizing Lebanon’s political elite. According to a high ranking member of the donor community who preferred to remain anonymous, much of the money allocated to development and infrastructure is being embezzled across the board in what the source says politicians affectionately call “the game”. Commercial nepotism stands out as the primary attribute of this ‘game’, especially during the bidding process. “The entire process is corrupt,” said the source, “sometimes specifications are set up to match one particular company’s abilities, and at other times there are members of political parties who head up selection boards who have no expertise in the matters they are assessing.” The source also pointed to specific examples such as the cost of managing garbage. He explained that garbage in Beirut is being managed at a cost of around $110 per ton whereas in Europe, with higher labor costs, the same work is done for around $60 per ton.
A straighter road ahead?
Fighting this kind of corruption is proving to be an uphill battle. However, many organizations in the region are taking steps to develop legal and organizational frameworks to make the practice of corruption much more difficult to conceal. One of the main impediments of fighting corruption is the lack of access to information. “One of our biggest problems in the region is data and information,” said El-Seblani, “we really can’t get data and information [we need].” He explained that POGAR experiences resistance from many governments in the region when asking them to provide accurate and complete information. Furthermore, for political reasons many governments in the region agree to share information with the UN but not with the public.
Despite the widespread nature of corruption in the region, progress is being made through institutions and partnerships being formed between governments and civil society. In Lebanon the LTA has forged a partnership with the Lebanese Ministry of Finance in order to increase transparency and access to information. On a regional scale, POGAR recently formed the Arab Anticorruption and Integrity Network (AAIN), composed of varying regional government anticorruption bodies that will work hand-in-hand with various civil society organizations in the region. Governments in the region are also beginning to recognize that the issue of corruption needs to be addressed. “People who have been working closely with governments in the region can see a big transition in terms of political recognition,” El-Seblani explained. These events are indicative of a wider acceptance and willingness to deal with the issue of corruption in the region as the issue becomes ever more present on the political radar. “Any official who wants to promote himself gives speeches about corruption and transparency,” said Al-Ghazali, “and it is becoming a priority.”
Let us hope that it stays one.
