24/10/2018 - The Anti-Corruption Division of the OECD and Argentina’s Attorney-General’s Office jointly organised, with the support of the British Embassy in Argentina, the inaugural meeting of the Latin America & Caribbean Anti-Corruption Law Enforcement Officials’ Network (“LAC LEN”), which was held on 22-23 October at the headquarters of the Argentine Attorney General’s Office in Buenos Aires.
The network aims to promote the exchange of experiences and good practices between the different jurisdictions of the region in order to equip anti-corruption law enforcement officials with the tools and knowledge necessary to effectively investigate and prosecute transnational corruption cases.
The meeting brought together more than 50 law enforcement officials from 14 countries. Representatives of the OECD, the Organization of American States (OAS), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the Iberoamerican Network of Prosecutors against Corruption of the Iberoamerican Association of Public Ministries (AIAMP), also participated.
The fight against corruption is ever more complex, given the multinational nature of the various actors and the types of transaction involved. Several countries in the region have adopted important legislative reforms in recent years which provide for greater responsibility for corruption and better alignment with the standards of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention. Now, the LAC LEN Network’s objective is to work with law enforcement officials to enforce these laws and find new methods to exchange information.
In this sense, the LAC LEN Network provides an opportunity for investigators, prosecutors and other law enforcement authorities to meet amongst other experts to improve their capacity to investigate and sanction corruption. The Network is open to participation by law enforcement officials directly involved in the investigation and prosecution of transborder corruption, including administrative agencies mandated to enforce corporate liability laws.
During the two-days meeting, prosecutors and law enforcement practitioners addressed key issues in the fight against corruption and transnational bribery: international cooperation and mutual legal assistance, including informal and practical cooperation in complex international investigations, special investigative techniques, the use of innovative tools to detect corruption, the responsibility of legal persons and corporate investigations, investigations on money laundering linked to corruption, and the efficient use of asset recovery tools.
The meetings promoted peer-to-peer sharing of practical experience based on real-life cases and new knowledge through analysis of hypothetical cases. Finally, the network helped law enforcement practitioners to build relationships and foster networks across the region in order to encourage the rapid exchange of information for law enforcement purposes and strengthen cooperation in corruption cases.
The LAC LEN Network will meet annually and in cooperation with other partners in the region, such as the OAS, the IDB, and the AIAMP.
For more information, contact: Daisy Pelham (Communications Officer), OECD Anti-Corruption Division ([email protected]). For more information about the OECD's anti-corruption work in Latin America and the Caribbean, please visit www.oecd.org/corruption/oecd-latinamericaanti-corruptionprogramme.htm.
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