Madam, - It is encouraging to see the debate in your columns as a result of David Adams's column of December 7th, which was partly inspired by John O'Shea of Goal, often a lone voice on this issue.
I cut my teeth as an aid worker in two of the world's most corrupt countries, Bangladesh and Sudan - although the former has at least now signed the UN Convention Against Corruption, for what that's worth. My own belief, based on experience of working in these and other developing countries, is that inward investment, business growth and prosperity are almost impossible to achieve in a way that benefits the population at large, if corruption is tolerated at the highest levels. Aid programmes are not immune to corruption and it is a tragic fact that corruption is endemic on much of the African continent.
Every day aid agency desk officers battle with corrupt officialdom throughout Africa in a struggle to ensure that 100 per cent of aid does go to the beneficiaries for whom it is intended and not to line the pockets of middlemen or to support narrow sectarian interests. Similarly, I am sure, Irish civil servants in Government Departments and county councils often have to struggle against our own politicians' desire to go against the public good and support property speculators, for example.
However feeble the efforts to bring offenders to book in Ireland might seem, at least we do operate a culture of accountability and good governance, rather than simply ignoring corruption and bare-faced robbery by our elected representatives.
It is clear that many African governments cannot be trusted. If the rule of law does not apply, corruption will flourish naturally. Uganda is unfortunate in that the media have done a pretty good job of making a slam-dunk case against Museveni's government when it comes to everything from looting its own banks to embezzling precious funds for Aids patients from the Global Fund to fight Aids, TB and Malaria. Angola is quite possibly beyond redemption until the oil money runs out.
One is fearful about the future of South Africa now that Jacob Zuma looks likely to be the next president, based on the votes of a few thousand partisan supporters who have elected him as head of the ANC despite his very fortunate acquittal last year on rape charges and the allegations of corruption hanging over him. The list goes on.
Hans Zomer (December 14th) plays to the liberal and anti-colonialist in most of us when he draws the entirely unfair inference that David Adams believes "Africans cannot be trusted with their own affairs, and that it takes Irish efficiency to sort the place out."
Most Africans are very good at managing their own affairs and eking out a living despite the black clouds of corruption pumped out by their ruling classes with the tacit support of many Western institutions. It is only when these governments make the mistake of carrying their corruption over into outright defiance of international norms on human rights that they begin to suffer the consequences. And at that stage they really don't care very much, as in Sudan and Zimbabwe.
Just as the world is seeking to mobilise itself against climate control, there is a need for someone to take leadership in the world-wide fight against corruption. If Irish Aid were to issue a rallying cry to other donor countries and take the lead in creating a donor forum for addressing these issues head on with the world's most corrupt countries, that alone would raise the bar in the fight against corruption. It would also create a better climate for Irish and other international NGOs to work independently, impartially and confidently with local partners to improve the lot of the world's poor.
I have no doubt that, given the high calibre of Ireland's diplomats, the reputation of our Department of Foreign Affairs and the generally positive performance of Irish Aid, Ireland is well placed to lead such an initiative rather than focusing just on bilateral initiatives which, however worthwhile, will be a long time bearing any fruit. - Yours, etc,
DENIS McCLEAN, Geneva, Switzerland.