The ability of the vast majority of Latin American countries to combat corruption continues to decline. And it deteriorated especially in Guatemala and Venezuela, reflecting the fragile state of democracy and the lack of political will.
The fifth edition of Cacity to Fight Corruption Index (CCC), presented annually by the Council of the Americas and Control Risks, revealed for the first time a decrease in the regional average, with declines in 10 of the 15 classified nations.
The CCC is an analytical tool that allows evaluating the cacity of the countries of the region to detect, punish and stop corruption.
Countries with the highest scores are considered to be those most likely to prosecute and punish corrupt actors. Impunity is more likely in countries at the bottom end of the ranking.
The scoring scale goes from 10, for the best rated, to zero for the least cable. In the region, Uruguay and Venezuela are at the extremes, as the best and worst, but without reaching the maximum score for each case.
Uruguay, Costa Rica and Chile, with the best score
“The deterioration in the ability to control corruption has serious implications for the quality of democracy and economic prospects,” said Theodore Kahn, associate director of Control Risks.
“It undermines confidence in institutions, which favors populist and polarizing proposals” and weakens investor confidence, the expert explained to The Associated Press.
In the 2023 edition of the CCC, Uruguay tops the list as the best-trained country to combat corruption, with a score of 6.99; followed by Costa Rica, with 6.76; and Chile, with 6.67.
Among the countries with the lowest score are Guatemala, with 2.86 points; Bolivia, with 2.56; and Venezuela, with 1.46.
Of the 15 countries, Guatemala and Venezuela experienced the most significant falls in their scores in the last year, 15% and 10.4% respectively.
Panama, on the other hand, registered a substantial improvement of 9% in year-on-year terms, to 5.39 points.
“The index shows what many of us have felt: anti-corruption efforts are losing momentum in many Latin American countries, even though the issue remains a priority for voters,” said Brian Winter, vice president for policy at the Council of the Americas.
Winter explained that since it is a slow erosion, and not a sudden one, there is hope that the trend can be reversed in the medium term.
As measured
First published in 2019, the index looks at 14 key variables, including the independence of judicial institutions, the strength of investigative journalism, and the amount of resources devoted to fighting corruption.
In Guatemala, where contested presidential elections were held this Sunday, the decline “is the result of the fragile state of democracy and the lack of political will to combat corruption and impunity,” said Valeria Vasquez, an analyst at the consultancy that conducted the study.
The country fell from 13th place on the CCC list to 14th this year, with sharp declines in the areas of legal cacity (20%) and democracy and political institutions (16%).
Under the presidency of Alejandro Giammattei, the Public Ministry has followed a pattern of judicial persecution and arrests, including judges, journalists, and prosecutors.
The United States has singled out the Guatemalan attorney general for “significant corruption” and included the head of the Special Prosecutor’s Office Against Impunity in the list of corrupt actors.
Venezuela, with the worst rating
In the case of Venezuela, which ranks last in the region for the fifth consecutive year, The ruling party controls the National Assembly, the Supreme Court of Justice, the Prosecutor’s Office and other public institutions, which respond to the guidelines of the government of Nicolas Maduro.
The variable of the index that evaluates the mobilization of civil society against corruption decreased in the country by 18% and the one that evaluates the quality of the press, by 15%, a reflection of the threats to press freedom and civil liberties by the Maduro government, according to the report.
Venezuela’s low score in the index reflects the process of institutional deterioration and erosion of democracy that the country has suffered and that has allowed the ruling party to co-opt or eliminate almost all the checks and balances that exist in a democratic system.
“There is no healthy division of powers that allows controlling and punishing” acts of corruption, Kahn said. “This situation facilitates impunity for certain members of the political elite,” he said.
Along with Guatemala, Mexico is the other country whose annual score has gone down year-over-year.
Source: AP
BC
Source: Clarin
