Records to do with Transparency International (TI), 1993-2005, 1993-2005

Transparency International (1993-2005)

Transparency International describes itself as a ‘global coalition against corruption’. Founded in 1993, with a modest membership and goals, it is now an internationally respected non-governmental organisation, with national ‘chapters’ in 100 countries, and, to quote Jeremy Pope, "quoted daily in the press around the world." A NZ chapter was begun in 1999.

Pope indicates that the genesis of the idea for TI came in a discussion that began within the Global Coalition for Africa in 1992, and continued throughout a series of ‘retreats’ that involved a World Bank official, Peter Eigen. Pope was approached by Eigen in London in 1993, whose initial idea for a bulletin that would publicly ‘name and shame’ corporations which were behaving corruptly in the developing world. Pope believed, however, that a less 'combative', more solution-focused approach was required. He was not alone, and the idea for an organisation which would concentrate on ‘coalition-building’ was developed instead – identifying, working alongside, and creating connections between those in the public sector who were disillusioned with corrupt international business practices.

The original vision for the configuration of the organisation was a small and temporary ‘secretariat’, who would be supported by “active groupings in perhaps 15 key countries.” It was decided that the core group would be based in Berlin, as opposed to London, New York, Washington or Paris. Whereas in those countries they would be but a small player among a multitude of NGOs, in Berlin they would be “unique, and an object of curiosity"; they would also remain close to western news sources.

A group of ten people from five countries signed the charter incorporating TI: Peter Eigen (Germany) ex-World Bank; Peter Conze (Germany); Frank Vogl (USA) former Washington correspondent of the London Times and ex-World Bank; Michael Hershman (USA) ex-USAID and security consultant; Roy A. Stacey (USA) of the Global Coalition for Africa; Laurence Cockcroft (UK) developmental economist; Kamal Hossain (Bangladesh) former Attorney-General and Minister for Foreign Affairs; Fritz Heimann (USA) General Electric legal counsel; Jerry Parfitt (UK) of Coopers and Lybrand, accountant; and Jeremy Pope (NZ) Commonwealth Secretariat and legal counsel to the Commonwealth Secretary General.

A Board of Directors was also formed from among the founding members, and Pope was appointed Managing Director. In addition to these members, an Advisory Council was also formed, creating a ‘resource’ of well-placed individuals who agreed to lend their names to the organisation, and to be available to give advice. Notable among these advisors were the Nobel Peace Prize winner and former President of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias, and Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president of Nigeria.

Both of these men spoke at the formal launch of the organisation in May 1993. Press attention was generated by another founding member of TI, Frank Vogl, and the global reaction was “encouraging”. As Pope has stated, TI “took an issue into the open that never before had been,” (RR) and letters of support sent to Berlin at the time of the launch indicated that there were many around the world who were grateful for its finally being brought to light. The founders of TI initially thought of themselves as a small 'ginger group' focusing exclusively on the issue of corruption in international business transactions, and in particular with the problems that this was creating for the poor of the developing world. Over the years, however, the TI mandate has expanded to take on corruption in all of its different forms, and the modus operandi has moved from primarily 'coalition-building' and raising awareness among key players; to building an arsenal of intellectual property to be shared and used by all those attempting to create change; to acting as consultants and facilitators within organisations seeking to address issues of corruption.

Throughout his time with TI, Pope has acted as a key driver of the organisation’s agenda, involved heavily in devising its strategies and approaches. The material contained in the TI series has been collected and created by Pope during the course of his work, and relates to his involvement in major projects and events connected to every stage of the organisation’s development up to 2003.

(Information from a background paper on TI included as part of JP’s talk to 2010 ANZSOG Annual Conference in Melbourne, August, 2010 – 'Getting Integrity Reforms Adopted: Lesson from Experience').