Civil Society Organizations Fighting Corruption: Theory and Practice Workshop

When?

Monday 9 July 2012 to Tuesday 10 July 2012

Where?

Faculty of Business Economics and Law University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH

Open to:

Public, Staff, Students

Speaker:

Indira Carr and David Goss

Admission price:

£95

Admission information:

Please purchase your ticket from the University of Surrey Online Store

The fight against corruption has figured high on the agenda of the international community since the mid 1990s resulting in the adoption of regional and international conventions. Civil society is regarded by many of these conventions as an important tool in this fight. While Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have an obvious role in raising awareness, their more direct involvement in fighting corruption has proved vexing. For example, following the Third Conference of the States Parties to the UNCAC, Doha, 2009, proposals for a peer review mechanism were adopted. These were widely criticized by CSOs for allowing states would to produce reviews that were secretive and lacking transparency. Similarly, CSOs argued for observer status in the Implementation Review Group at the 2010 Fourth Conference in Marrakesh 2010, to be refused by the States Parties. 

This reluctance on the part of states to allow substantive involvement of CSOs raises a number of interesting questions that merit further delineation and investigation. The UN continues to insist that “CSOs are UN system partners and valuable UN links to civil society . . . .  and are indispensable partners for UN efforts at the country level”.

It would be easy simply to blame states for wanting to retain their hold on power and to exclude any bodies that might be critical of their established interests. However, we suggest that this would be an overly-simplistic answer. The relationship between states and CSOs – and between CSOs themselves – is a complex and dynamic one. 

In this workshop we seek to move beyond statements of blame and recrimination, to surface this complexity and, in so doing, to build a level of understanding that offers a basis for concrete and sustainable actions.

Delegate fee

A delegate fee of £95 is payable by all attendees, whether or not they are presenting a paper. Advance booking does not guarantee your paper will be accepted for presentation. The delegate fee includes: 

• Dinner on 9th July 
• Lunch and light refreshments on both days 

Delegates will be responsible for their own overnight accommodation. A list of hotels with conference rates will be supplied.