Department of Government Ethics

To establish a comprehensive system for Taiwan to integrate itself into the current global anti-corruption trends and international laws, Agency Against Corruption of the Ministry of Justice, with Angle Publishing Company, co-hosted the “Academic Seminar on United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC)” on September 1st of 2015 at International Lecture Hall of Central Weather Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communications. About 180 participants, who came from various professions, such as public servants, judges, prosecutors, scholars, workers from social groups, employees from private enterprises as well as graduate students from universities, were attracted to attend the seminar. As a platform for the academia, the private sector and the government authorities to exchange ideas and give suggestions, the seminar aimed to accumulate sufficient energy for Taiwan so as to facilitate the integration of provisions of the Convention into its domestic legal systems.

Honored guest Mr. Wu Chen Huan, Political Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice, was invited to give a welcome speech at the opening ceremony, emphasizing that despite the fact that Taiwan is now not a member of the United Nations, yet it cannot be excluded from the international anti-corruption community, and must face up to the need for anti-corruption legislation. Another honored speaker Chilik Yu, Head of Consulting Group of Transparency International Chinese Taipei and Professor of the Department of Public Policy and Management, Shin Hsin University, addressed the topic “Taiwan’s Current Performance and Challenge in Implementing the Provisions of Preventive Measures in UNCAC ” presenting his research results and rich experiences gained from working with TI. In addition, the seminar invited many other distinguished scholars and experts to present or share their research results and analyses, hoping to explore a workable way to implement the provisions of the UNCAC including amending the laws.

In view of the great number of participants and their enthusiasm in exchanging opinions during the seminar, it is clear that the issues related to the Convention are worth further exploration and continuous concern. Through examining current organization of the public sector and the legal systems, it is found inevitable that when the implementation act enters into force, the governments need to amend, abolish, or enact the laws, and at the same time to do the explanation or interpretation when there is conflict or lack of clarity between legal systems. To assist the government to establish a comprehensive set of anti-corruption mechanism, the continuous dialogue between the authorities and the academia is the key for people in the society to reach a consensus.

Source of Original Article (in Chinese):