WATCH: Holding Kleptocrats to Account: Redirecting Frozen Assets and the International Anti-Corruption Court

On August 6, 2020 Senator Ratna Omidvar participated in the World Refugee and Migration Council’s webinar, moderated by Susan Harada, Associate Professor at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. Fellow panelists included Lloyd Axworthy, Chair of the World Refugee and Migration Council, Mark L. Wolf, Chair of Integrity Initiatives International, Allan Rock, WRMC Distinguished Adviser and Former Attorney General of Canada, Iegor Soboliev, Former Member of Parliament in Ukraine, María De Los Ángeles Estrada, Executive Director of the Transparency and Anti-corruption Initiative at the Monterrey Institute of Technology, and Michael Camilleri, Director of the Peter D. Bell Rule of Law Program at the Inter-American Dialogue. 

The World Bank estimates that every year corrupt officials worldwide steal US$20 billion to US$40 billion from money intended as development assistance. As additional funds are earmarked for COVID-19 related support in developing countries, the risk of misuse is even more acute.

During the webinar, the panelists discussed two complementary proposals designed to help hold these kleptocrats accountable for the damage they have caused. One, proposed by the World Refugee & Migration Council in its 2019 A Call to Action: Transforming the Global Refugee System report, asks countries to confiscate and repurpose assets of corrupt leaders for the benefit of refugees. The second, proposed by Integrity Initiatives International, aims to create a global coalition to create an International Anti-Corruption Court.

Watch the webinar:

Click here to learn more about the World Refugee and Migration Council