PRESS RELEASE – EMBARGOED UNTIL 00:01 GMT+1 TUESDAY 28.08.12
A closed-door London arbitration tribunal between Heritage Oil and the Government of Uganda denies Ugandans the right to information about the management of... read more
News and reports
23.08.2012 | Heritage Oil arbitration case in London deprives Ugandan citizens of right to information
Angola | Company Due Diligence | Conflict Minerals | Democratic Republic of Congo | Equatorial Guinea | Laws and Frameworks | Libya | Publish What You Pay | Republic of Congo | Oil Gas and Mining | Conflict | Corruption
Click here for Global Witness comment Section 1502 rule
Global Witness initial response to SEC vote on Dodd Frank rules
Follow the conversation on #DoddFrank
Global Witness welcomes the long-overdue vote on... read more
20.08.2012 | Tokyo Sexwale and the DRC's Mr Grab
"A $150-million investment ties Tokyo Sexwale to a controversial Israeli businessman as he pulled off the "heist" of a prize mining asset in the DRC" - Mail & Guardian. Click here to read the article. read more
简体中文
A recent decree from Afghanistan’s President Karzai represents a major step forward in turning the government’s commitments to a transparent mining and petroleum sector into a reality. The ball is now in the... read more
27.07.2012 | Possible new ENRC deal raises fresh corruption risks
En français
Global Witness expressed alarm at reports that FTSE-100 listed miner ENRC may be close to a deal to buy out Congolese mining assets belonging to businessman Dan Gertler. Companies associated with Mr Gertler... read more
اعلامیه مطبوعاتی - دري
简体中文
Campaigners today welcomed a landmark agreement on good governance in Afghanistan’s mining sector, but warned that civil society engagement, deal disclosures and inclusion of environmental... read more
05.07.2012 | د توکیو کنفرانس، د افغانستان د تیلو او کانونو په سکتور کې، حساب ورکولو ته د ځای ورکولو لپاره، یوه ټاکونکې موکه ده
د مدني ټولنې کارکوونکو نن وویل چې، د افغانستان دولت او مدني ټولنه، باید ژمنه وکړي چې، د تیلو، ګاز او د کانونوټولې معاملې، د هغو له ټولو جزئیاتو سره خپاره کړي او د سیمې له خلکو سره سلا مشورې وکړي. دا په داسې حال... read more
Tokyo conference a defining opportunity to embed accountability inAfghanistan’s oil and mining sectors
For immediate release.
اعلامیه مطبوعاتی - دري
مطبوعاتي اعلامیه - پښتو
The Government of Afghanistan and the... read more
05.07.2012 | کنفرانس توکيو يک فرصت تعيين کننده يى برای جاسازی حسابدهی در سکتور نفت و معادن افغانستان می باشد
اعلامیه مطبوعاتی
کنفرانس توکیو یک فرصت تعیین کننده یی برای جاسازی حسابدهی در سکتور نفت و معادن افغانستان می باشد
فعالان جامعه مدنی امروز گفتند که دولت افغانستان وجامعه جهانی باید تعهد نمایند... read more
04.07.2012 | Tokyo Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan
The Tokyo Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (8th July) brings together the Afghan government, international donors and civil society for a one-day event which will set the framework for future assistance to the... read more
The Financial Times has reported that Dan Gertler, a businessman close to the Congolese president, is one of the main partners in two offshore companies that obtained oil blocks in northeastern Democratic Republic of... read more
Conflict Minerals | Zimbabwe | Conflict Diamonds | Business and Human Rights | Conflict | Corruption
简体中文
The international community must act to prevent off budget financing of Mugabe’s feared secret police, said Global Witness in a report published today.
The report, Financing a Parallel Government?, reveals that... read more
20.06.2012 | Financing a parallel government?
Conflict Minerals | Zimbabwe | Conflict Diamonds | Business and Human Rights | Conflict | Corruption
Read the press release to accompany this report
Read the ensuing debate in the UK Parliament
This report reveals how Zimbabwe’s feared secret police, the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO), appears to have received... read more
17.06.2012 | Global Witness calls for action to end hidden company ownership in light of money laundering accusations
пресс-релиз на русском языке доступен тут
Global Witness is today revealing evidence that numerous UK companies appear to have helped facilitate a major money laundering scandal centred on a bank in Central Asia. Grave... read more
17.06.2012 | Grave Secrecy
简体中文
Read the Press Release
Grave Secrecy was published in June 2012. It reveals evidence that numerous UK companies have been involved in a major money laundering scandal involving a Kyrgyzstan bank, and shows how... read more
16.05.2012 | Young girl killed as clashes over land between communities and authorities escalate in Cambodia
The killing of a young teenaged girl in clashes with Cambodian military police is the latest in a series of violent conflicts between local people and the authorities trying to evict them from their land, Global Witness... read more
Further information about Global Witness's investigation into Glencore’s investments in Congo and the company’s links to Dan Gertler, as well as written responses by Glencore and Mr Gertler’s... read more
Afghan government must publish all oil and mining contracts and related documents ahead of key upcoming donor conference
To read the full report, Getting to Gold, click here.
برای دانلود متن کامل گزارش، اینجا را کلیک... read more
Recent pledges by the Liberian Government to enhance transparency and the involvement of civil society in its oil sector represent are a welcome step forward, says Global Witness today.
International interest in Liberia... read more
(Paris, February 27, 2012) – UNESCO’s governing executive board should abolish a prize named after and funded by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea at its upcoming meeting, seven civil society... read more
14.02.2012 | Oil Industry must stop supporting secrecy say financial transparency and anti-poverty groups
Washington, DC – Anti-poverty groups and supporters of financial transparency today urged the oil industry to drop its attacks on a new law that will reduce corruption and reveal the money trail between industry and... read more
Proposals to Amend Foreign Bribery Law Could Significantly Undermine Human Rights, Commerce, U.S. Standing in the World
WASHINGTON, DC – More than 30 civil society and business groups, including human rights and... read more
12.12.2011 | Global Witness welcomes landmark commitment to good management of Afghan mineral wealth
Afghanistan and its donors have taken an important step in making sure the country’s vast potential mineral wealth translates into development by recognising the importance of transparency and accountability in the... read more
14.11.2011 | Moves to stop corrupt politicians and criminals from hiding behind anonymous U.S. shell companies welcomed
Global Witness applauds Representatives Maloney (D-NY), Frank (D-MA) and Lynch (D-MA) for introducing legislation that would tackle corporate secrecy. If passed into law, the Incorporation Transparency and Law... read more
Marrakesh - Today 140 governments acknowledged systemic failures in the controls that should stop banks taking dictators’ money, in a move welcomed by anti-corruption campaigners Global Witness and Sherpa. The... read more
06.10.2011 | Afghanistan and its allies must bring transparency to mineral sector if country is to prosper
Afghanistan and its allies must take urgent steps to prevent the potential benefits of its vast mineral and petroleum deposits being lost to the corruption that has plagued the aid effort of the last decade, said Global... read more
05.10.2011 | UNESCO: Obiang prize suspended again
The decision by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s executive board on October 4, 2011, to defer any action on a highly controversial life sciences prize named after and funded by... read more
26.09.2011 | Immediate reform needed if Liberians are to profit from potential oil finds, report shows
Click here to read this report
BBC Focus on Africa: Global Witness interviewed about this report.
Far-reaching reforms of Liberia’s oil sector are urgently needed if its population is to benefit from future oil... read more
20.09.2011 | Global Witness welcomes landmark U.S. effort to curb corruption and promote transparency
The United States’ dual pledge to implement the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and to support legislation that would stop U.S. states from allowing secretive front companies to be set up represents... read more
Transparency of Libya’s oil wealth must be a key priority of Thursday’s negotiations over the country’s future, said Global Witness today. The meeting, which is to be co-chaired by UK Prime Minister David Cameron and... read more
On 30th April 2010, the Cambodian Embassy published a press release challenging Global Witness to a public debate, in response to our criticism of the government's management of the country's natural resources. This... read more
10.05.2010 | Supporting documents for "Shifting Sand" report
These documents accompany and substantiate claims made in the report "Shifting Sand: how Singapore's demand for Cambodian sand threatens ecosystems and undermines good governance." The details of each is as follows:... read more
23.04.2010 | Open letter to Heads of State and Finance Ministers for G20 renews call for effective anti-money laundering framework
April 2010
To the Heads of State and Finance Ministers of the G20,
We wrote to the G20 last summer to ask that its Pittsburgh summit result in a strong and explicit statement on the need to fight corruption through more... read more
25.02.2010 | A near miss? Lessons learnt from the allocation of mining licences in the Gola Forest Reserve in Sierra Leone
Between 2005 and 2007, two mining licences were issued in the Gola Forest Reserve in Sierra Leone, even though the area was a proposed national park. This new report identifies weaknesses in Sierra Leone's natural... read more
This new report from Global Witness was written with the help of investigative journalist Ken Silverstein.
Read the press release.
Read about the story in the New York Times and in Harpers magazine online
Download the... read more
16.11.2009 | All That Gas?: The EU and Turkmenistan
The European Commission is turning a blind eye to corruption, lack of transparency and poor human rights in the repressive police state of Turkmenistan in a bid to secure future gas supplies, according to a new... read more
24.09.2009 | Corruption hunters demand action from G20
To the Heads of State and Finance Ministers of the G20
We are writing to ask the G20 to ensure that its Pittsburgh summit this September results in a strong and explicit statement on the need to fight corruption... read more
This joint briefing paper by Global Witness, Tax Justice Network, Christian Aid and Global Financial Integrity explains how illicit financial flows out of the developing world is entrenching poverty. These... read more
07.09.2009 | These photos and maps are available for download and reproduction. Please credit Global Witness
GNPOC headquarters, Khartoum
Petrodar headquarters, Khartoum
Painting for sale on the streets of Khartoum, showing Chinese President, Hu Jintao, inside a map of Sudan
Map... read more
20.08.2009 | Correspondence betweeen Global Witness and Samling
Liberia | Forests | Corruption
In July Global Witness alleged that Samling, a company with a history of illegal logging, was linked to three companies bidding for forestry management contracts in Liberia. In reponse to these allegations, Samling... read more
The Joint Scrutiny Committee in the UK Parliament is currently considering the Draft Bribery Bill produced by the Ministry of Justice under Anti-corruption Champion Jack Straw MP. Global Witness made a submission to... read more
Liberia | Forests | Corruption
Three firms linked to Malaysian timber giant Samling, a company notorious for destroying tropical forests and abusing local communities, have been considered for major logging contracts in Liberia because of flaws in... read more
The takeover of Hungary’s largest independent gas supplier, Emfesz, by a shell company with unknown owners has once again highlighted the opacity of the natural gas trade from the former Soviet Union, a key... read more
27.05.2009 | Global Witness letter to the European Commission President regarding corruption and energy security
5 March 2009
Dear President Barroso,
Global Witness is a non-governmental organisation that campaigns against the misuse of natural resource wealth for corruption and conflict. We wish to request a meeting with... read more
19.05.2009 | Congressional Testimony on Undue Diligence
Global Witness lead investigator, Anthea Lawson, tells members of the House Financial Services Committee, including Chairman Barney Frank, that a catalogue of failures in the design and enforcement of anti-money... read more
30.05.2013 | Announcing the Financial Transparency Coalition
By Porter McConnell - Manager of the Financial Transparency Coalition.
When the Task Force on Financial Integrity and Economic Development was created in 2009, only a handful of experts were following the issue of... read more
One story that will be sure to develop in 2013 is the controversy around ENRC’s activities in Congo. For the background for this, a good place to start is the Global Witness statement of 23 December: “ENRC shareholders... read more
Rosie Sharpe, Senior campaigner, Global Witness
Investigations carried out by the Guardian, ICIJ and the BBC's Panorama programme into the ease with which anonymous shell companies can be used to move dirty money... read more
01.10.2012 | Mystery shopping exercise shows how easy it is to set up anonymous companies in the U.S. and UK
Originally posted on the Taskforce on Financial Integrity’s website here.
By Rosie Sharp
Rosie Sharp is a Senior Campaigner for Global Witness, a member of the Task Force Coordinating Committee.
You’re a criminal and... read more
Read this blog on Huffington Post.
When governments around the world are taking measures in support of fiscal austerity, foreign assistance is always a prime target for the chopping block. Bravely, some governments,... read more
This piece first ran on the Guardian website.
The rich world has been busy tightening its belt in recent weeks, with Britain, Germany and Spain all announcing the severest economic cuts in generations and... read more
20.08.2012 | Tokyo Sexwale and the DRC's Mr Grab
"A $150-million investment ties Tokyo Sexwale to a controversial Israeli businessman as he pulled off the "heist" of a prize mining asset in the DRC" - Mail & Guardian. Click here to read the article. read more
Article: Why fighting corruption in Asia involves battling apathy read more
26.10.2010 | Transparency International - Corruption Index 2010
Transparency International - Corruption Index 2010 – Authoritative annual review of global corruption from our friends at Transparency International.
http://www.transparency.org/news_room/latest_news/... read more
26.10.2010 | BBC World - War-hit countries most corrupt
War-torn states are still seen as being the most corrupt in the world, according to a new report from Transparency International.
BBC World - War-hit countries most corrupt read more
05.06.2013 | The Economist supports global transparency standard
Today The Economist came out in support of the campaign “to put a stop to hidden company ownership and to make energy and mining companies disclose more about the payments they make to win concessions.”
Global Witness... read more
One story that will be sure to develop in 2013 is the controversy around ENRC’s activities in Congo. For the background for this, a good place to start is the Global Witness statement of 23 December: “ENRC shareholders... read more
Rosie Sharpe, Senior campaigner, Global Witness
Investigations carried out by the Guardian, ICIJ and the BBC's Panorama programme into the ease with which anonymous shell companies can be used to move dirty money... read more
Rob Walker of the BBC Assignment team investigates what’s happened to billions of dollars in oil revenues paid to the government of Equatorial Guinea since it's oil boom in the 1990s.
Anthea Lawson from Global... read more
10.11.2011 | Centre for Public Integrity: China-based corporate web behind troubled Africa resource deals
For centuries, wave after wave of colonists and foreign investors have swept through Africa, looking for profits from the continent’s abundant reserves of oil and prized minerals, write Beth Morrissey, Himanshu... read more
With Colonel Muammar Gaddafi all but gone, Libya's prospects can be summed up in one word: oil, says Vivienne Walt in TIME Magazine. Far different from the revolutions in Tunisia or Egypt, or the rebellions in Yemen... read more
Human rights organisations are calling on donor governments to reassess their aid programmes to Cambodia if the country passes a law that can be used to muzzle local and foreign NGOs, writes the Guardian's Marc Tran. read more
31.08.2011 | FT - Wealth fund still conceals inner secrets
Beyond the immediate priority of securing control of the LIA assets frozen as a result of international sanctions, the challenge confronting Libya’s new leadership is how to reform an institution that, if it survives in... read more
15.07.2011 | Guardian | Act now on oil to stop future Gaddafis
The 40-nation Libya contact group is meeting with the Interim National Transitional Council to decide how best to support the rebels against Muammar Gaddafi's forces. Global Witness's Brendan O'Donnell argues on Comment... read more
The London-based anti-corruption campaign group, Global Witness, said it has evidence that Teodorin Obiang, the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of the tiny West African state of Equatorial Guinea, has plans to... read more
11.10.2010 | Al Jazeera – UK banks ‘aided Nigeria corruption’
High street banks in the United Kingdom could have helped fuel corruption in Nigeria by accepting millions of dollars in deposits from dubious politicians in the west African nation, an international corruption... read more
What we're reading
Global Witness in the press
05.06.2013 | The Economist supports global transparency standard
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