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CORRUPTION NEWS

Freedom of expression underpins universal human rights 

Image: Flickr / Rachel Hinman With World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) 2023 upon us again, its custodian, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco), names four fundamental freedoms which are outlined in the Preamble of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights: freedom of speech, freedom of belief, freedom from fear, and freedom from Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Addressing a gap – how to better support civil society

By Kersty McCourtFirst published on Open Government Partnership Robust and vibrant civil societies play a critical role in contributing to development. Civil society helps shape policies, advocate for the needs and demands of citizens, provide essential services, protect human rights, and strengthen public participation in democracy. Yet, over the past decade, there has been insufficient Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

African governance index shows a less secure and democratic continent

Released on 25 January, just days before this week’s Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG) gives further insight into why sub-Saharan Africa is consistently the worst performing region in the CPI. Launched in 2007 by Sudanese-British businessman Mo Ibrahim, the IIAG is published every two years, and is described as Read more >

RAISING AWARENESS

Access to info enhanced by AI and e-governance

Image: Unesco On 28 September the world marked the International Day for the Universal Access to Information (IDUAI). This event, established in November 2015 through UN resolution (38 C/70) and first commemorated in 2016, aims to facilitate international discussions on policy and guidelines in this important area.  Access to information plays an important role in Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Safeguarding our democracy in the age of growing mistrust

Electoral democracy – a democratic government based on a system that enables all citizens to select one candidate from a list of competitors for political office in a process of election. Each citizen becomes a voter who casts a secret ballot indicating their choices. In order for the election to qualify for democratic integrity, the Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

Civil society’s fight for transparency is vital for democracy

Democracy: a system of government in which the people of a country can vote to elect their representatives;fair and equal treatment of everyone in an organisation, etc., and their right to take part in making decisions. Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries Democracy, by its very definition, can only work if all people are able to participate in Read more >

CORRUPTION NEWS

CSOs condemn recent threats by govt officials, call for accountability

Dear Mr President, The ongoing attacks on civil society organisations by government officials are concerning and must receive urgent attention. These attacks are unacceptable, go against our country’s Constitution, and undermine our democracy. This week, the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) announced that they are temporarily closing their offices after Councillor Nkululeko Mbundu, Read more >

OPINIONS

Directly electing our president does not guarantee accountability

By Steven FriedmanFirst published on My Vote Counts Academics who teach politics do not believe that their knowledge equips them to judge court cases or to represent parties in legal actions. But judges and lawyers tend to believe that legal training somehow equips them with a knowledge of politics greater than that of their fellow Read more >