Lithuania does not fight against bribery? | KaunoDiena.lt
Lithuania is very little, or maybe not at all, fulfilling its promises and international obligations in the fight against bribery. This was done by the team of the non-governmental organization “Transparency International” against corruption after investigations. Interview with Ingrida Kalinauskiene, the head of this organization’s branch in Lithuania.
– The fight against corruption is the weak side of Lithuania. Are we lifting from the end?
– In this assessment, we fall into countries that do not implement the obligations of the OECD Convention poorly or at all. We are a small country, which means that we do a lot with foreign countries – through exports, through our departments. We operate more widely than just in Lithuania. There are various risks when operating in other markets, one of which is corruption: possible bribery of foreign officials, bribes, etc. The OECD fights against the Bribery Convention and calls on countries to commit to preventing such bribery in foreign countries. When we joined the OECD five years ago, we also made this commitment. The value of investigating how countries are doing in terms of compliance and where we stand.
The entire LNK report is in the video:
– What is the situation in Latvia and Estonia?
– Both Latvians and Estonians look better. Latvia’s assessment this year is one of two countries that move up one category and are at medium obligations. Has significantly more research than Lithuania. There is really a lot to stretch out. The experience of the neighbors shows that it is possible.
– Maybe you can elaborate on the scandalous number of investigations into corruption and possible bribery that have been carried out in the last few years.
– Investigation and how many investigations of corruption issues have been launched abroad. We are very concerned about the possible bribery of officials of a company related to blood collection and processing in Latvia. This investigation was closed due to lack of evidence. Of the challenges, we are reporting this because there is a lack of information and cooperation with other institutions in foreign countries. One of the suggestions we make is to strengthen cooperation between law enforcement authorities.
There is really a lot to stretch out. The experience of the neighbors shows that it is possible.
– What are the reasons for this? Why does corruption remain in the impunity zone?
– We are talking about cases of corruption in foreign countries. Hence, it goes beyond the borders of the national country and cooperates a lot with other institutions. Strengthening cooperation and data exchange is essential. It is also important that the business knows what obligations it has to comply with. When a company operates in another country, it represents our country. If we don’t follow the laws, we bribe the officials, we shape the opinion of the citizens of that country about Lithuania.
– If it is not possible to gather evidence, maybe the Lithuanians are not bribing?
– No company is immune to corruption. All companies have risks, only if they notice it in time and can properly control it so that it does not turn into a scandal.