The final meeting of the INTERPOL Group of Experts on Corruption (IGEC) saw members formally recognised for their contribution by INTERPOL’s Secretary General Ronald K Noble at a ceremony at its General Secretariat headquarters.
Key among the achievements of the IGEC since its creation in 1999 are the production of the Global Standards to Combat Corruption in Police Forces/Services and the Library of Best Practices, comprehensive documents which have been accepted worldwide as essential texts for corruption investigators.
Secretary General Noble said the organization, and each of its 190 member countries, owed the IGEC members a debt of gratitude for their outstanding and dedicated service.
“The INTERPOL Group of Experts on Corruption has done much more than accomplish its mandate. It has created a strong foundation in which INTERPOL anchors its present and future anti-corruption initiatives. This foundation is a lasting legacy to our strong and successful partnership for the past 11 years,” the INTERPOL chief told the gathered experts.
The final meeting of the IGEC marked the completion of the group’s mandate and the development of INTERPOL’s anti-corruption activities, including initiatives to assist law enforcement bodies in recovering and returning stolen public funds to victim countries. A key element in this is the INTERPOL Global Focal Point Platform, a network of specialists available worldwide 24/7 to respond to emergency requests for assistance where a rapid response is crucial to law enforcement in order to avoid losing the money trail.
Secretary General Noble presented medals and certificates to Chairman of the IGEC, Hon. Justice Barry O’Keefe AM, former Supreme Court Judge of New South Wales, Australia and Commissioner of the ICAC in New South Wales; Vice-Chairman of the IGEC Michael Hershman, President of the Fairfax Group and co-founder of Transparency International; Sue Akers, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the London Metropolitan Police Service; Kevin Ford, Managing Director and Chief Compliancy Officer with Regulatory DataCorp; Dr Michel Girodo, Professor in Criminology at Ottawa University, Canada; Paul Lachal Roberts with the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and Abu Kassim Bin Mohamed, Commissioner with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption.
Other IGEC members not present at the ceremony: Mark Codd, Chief Security Officer with Siemens; Theodore Greenberg of the World Bank; Wolfgang Hetzer, Anticorruption Advisor (OLAF); Martin Kreutner of the International Anti-Corruption Academy; Patrick Moulette, Head of the Anti-Corruption Division, Organization for Economic Co-operation And Development; Professor Pakdee Pothisiri, National Anti-Corruption Commission, Thailand and Ryan Wong, Director of Investigations, Independent Commission Against Corruption, Hong Kong, China.
