Statement of H.E. Dr Igor Lukšić, Minister of Finance - Second Session of the Conference of the State parties of the UN Convention against Corruption (Nusa Dua, Indonesia)

Your Excellencies,
Distinguished participants,
Honorable colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my great pleasure to be here today and to take the flour on behalf of the Government of Montenegro. At the outset I would like to point out that we align our position to the one presented by the EU Presidency. Therefore, let me draw your attention to some specific Montenegrin issues.

Montenegro deposited the accession instrument to the UN Convention against Corruption, on October 23, 2006. Having in mind the importance of this global anti-corruption instrument, the process of harmonization and implementation of the Convention into the national legislation became one of the country's priorities, defined both in national anti-corruption Programme and Action plan for fight corruption and organized crime, as well as in all strategic documents related to the European integration process of Montenegro.

Since 2000, Montenegro has undertaken consistent and complex reforms of the institutional and legal framework aiming to decrease the levels of corruption and ensure the efficiency of its anti-corruption policies. These activities included comprehensive legislative processes and implementation of new provisions and relevant international standards, the establishment of specialized bodies in areas of anti-corruption, public procurement, prevention of money laundering and conflict of interest, the introduction and use of special investigative techniques (protection of witnesses, measures of secret surveillance, etc), as well as setting Directorate for Anti-Corruption Initiative to be a central national body for prevention of corruption and coordination of activities regarding the implementation of UN Convention against corruption in our country.

Having in mind the issues of prevention of corruption, incrimination of corruption, international co-operation and asset recovery, as essential components of the Convention, the future activities of the relevant bodies of Montenegro will be related to:
the improvement of legislation (new Criminal Procedure Code, Law on Mutual Legal Assistance, Law on Managing the Seized and Confiscated Property, Law on Conflict of Interests, Law on Protection of Whistleblowers, etc);
enhancement of preventive and promotional anti-corruption activities, particularly those by the media, NGO sector and civil society;
the activities aimed at conducting of researches on forms, causes and consequences of corruption in deferent areas;
strengthening the capacities of law enforcement bodies, including education and training for representatives of the competent bodies and institutions;
and other numerous activities, in order to obtain the maximum possible level of harmonization of Montenegrin legislative and institutional framework with the UN Convention against corruption.

These activities will continue to be undertaken in cooperation and assistance of UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), UNDP, OSCE, Council of Europe, Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI), OECD, USAID, and other international organizations and institutions active in the fight against corruption.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Corruption presents inevitable companion of the society's development, recognizable in specific acts, but not exempt from the state administration and private sector, as a system. At the same time, its presence often signals existence of various underlying barriers within the economy, including inefficiency of the public administration. For this reason, it is necessary to struggle against this criminal phenomenon at all level, because it is the only way to have the whole system as a partner in fighting "the threats posed by the corruption to the stability and security of societies, which undermines the institutions and values of democracy, ethical values and justice, and jeopardize sustainable development and the rule of law as it was worded in the Preamble of Convention. Not less is it important to increase the level of economic freedoms and build solid market economy. That includes the need to improve the overall quality of public services.

The experience we have gathered on difficulties and challenges of member countries when facing corruption and other forms of organized crime, has made the necessity to review and readjust our efforts, by focusing on the importance of cooperation, the exchange of information and transfer of knowledge on existing institutional policies, through the best practices and lessons learnt.

These efforts we made possible and will enhance them in the future.


Thank you for your kind attention.


Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, 28 January to 1 February 2008