The 2024 2nd Integrity Awards Ceremony & Taiwan Transparency Forum was held by the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the Grand Hi-Lai Taipei on Dec. 9 during UN International Anti-Corruption Day.
Vice Premier Cheng Li-Chiun (鄭麗君) was invited to deliver a speech, together with the participation of many other major anti-corruption campaigners from around the world, including Francois Valerian and Ketakandriana Rafitoson, the chair and vice president of Transparency International, Sang-Hak Lee, the co-chair of the Korean, and Ingrida Kalinauskiene, chief executive officer of Transparency International Lithuania, and other honorable guests.
In addition, two deputy directors, Elanas Jablonskas and Egidijus Radzeviciusr, accompanied by several other principal officials of the Special Investigation Bureau of the Republic of Lithuania, the host country of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) this year, paid a special visit to Taiwan for the event where they conveyed a resolution to build a transparent Taiwan.
The ceremony began with Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-Chien (鄭銘謙) and Director-General Feng Cheng (馮成) of the Agency Against Corruption signing the UNCAC Review Transparency Pledge. This marks the first time Taiwan has aligned with international standards to announce the progress of the third national report, demonstrating Taiwan's commitment to transparency.
Vice Premier Cheng said in her speech that the freedom and democracy we enjoy today are hard-earned and firmly guarded values in Taiwan. In the face of global challenges, Taiwan must build up a more resilient democracy based on positive governance that is constantly improving. Since his inauguration day, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) has set the goal of “the principle of transparent and diligent administration, the practice of democratic governance, and the establishment of an open government.” Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) has also called for “zero tolerance of corruption” as the core value to create an honest and transparent public service environment.
Even though not a UN member, Taiwan still promotes national integrity per the United Nations Convention against Corruption by announcing national reports, holding international reviews every four years, and signing the Convention Review Transparency Commitment to demonstrate the government’s determination to fight corruption. The Integrity Awards Ceremony & Taiwan Transparency Forum also encourage the public sector to create a government with a sense of service worthy of the people’s trust.
Anti-corruption is a kind of work with a beginning but no end, and there is no such thing as optimum, only better. Only by building a transparent government can we respond to people's expectations, unite society, push the country forward, and continue on the path of innovation, prosperity, fairness, justice, and sustainable development.
A total of 26 agencies (institutions) applied for the 2nd Integrity Awards. Among them, five were selected from the "Transparent and Integrity Group": Kaohsiung City Motor Vehicles Office, Taiwan International Ports Corporation, Taipei City Department of Information Technology, New Taipei City Land Administration Department, and Taitung County Environmental Protection Bureau.
For the "Measures of Innovative Service Group," three agencies were selected: Yulin Prison (Agency of Corrections), Kaohsiung City Social Affairs Bureau, and the Nantou City Office of Nantou County. This group included both central and local agencies.
Integrity measures were adopted in transportation, information, land administration, environmental protection, correction, social welfare, and basic municipal administration. Directors at award-winning agencies also try to improve service processes and use smart systems to enhance information disclosures.
Meanwhile, smart systems can help improve work efficiency and avoid risks to integrity. Taiwan can continue to pass on and spread the value of integrity and encourage more directors to guide their colleagues to create a better future for citizens.
During the forum, Minister of Justice Cheng noted that Taiwan has become an indispensable part of the anti-corruption alliance, and its efforts have gradually gained international recognition.
Deputy Minister Wu Chih-chung (吳志中) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also emphasized Taiwan's democratic values, while democracy, human rights, and administrative transparency can be found everywhere.
The “GCTF International Workshop on Multi-Stakeholder Engagement in Anti-Corruption” held by the Ministry of Justice last June (2023) attracted more than 200 government officials, experts, scholars, and NGO members from 15 countries.
Agency Against Corruption Director-General Feng led a team to participate in the International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) organized by Transparency International in Vilnius, Lithuania, from June 18 to 21 this year. The delegation talked about the Taiwanese government and civil society's efforts and achievements in terms of integrity.
Transparency International Chair Valerian delivered a speech at the forum encouraging participants to extend transparency to the public and private sectors from a macro perspective.
Vice Chair Rafitoson and Co-Chair Lee of the Korean branch recognized the importance of transparency and citizen consociation over anti-corruption and believed that civil society plays a pivotal role in preventing and combating corruption.
Kalinauskiene, the person in charge of the Transparency International School, shared how the institute had developed and displayed unique perspectives for global anti-corruption workers to combat corruption and enhance transparency.
Darius Mickevicius, director of the Special Investigation Bureau of the Republic of Lithuania, and Shen Feng-liang (沈鳳樑), deputy director of the Agency Against Corruption also explained how to strengthen multilateral collaboration to fight against corruption and reidentify the importance of participation and transparency mechanisms through information exchange and cross-disciplinary cooperation based on major domestic transparency measures. During the forum, the heavyweights carried out diverse and exciting discussions, inspiring new ideas and thinking regarding the practice and prospects of transparency.
The event demonstrated the anti-corruption practices that have been promoted in Taiwan during recent years: by taking root internally, relentlessly improving various integrity measures, bringing itself in line with the outside world, and opening up the road to internationalization.
