Con$idering the $ource....
"Report says corruption rampant in South Asia" AP May 22, 2014
KATMANDU, Nepal — South Asia is the most corrupt region of the world and governments must strengthen their antigraft agencies to prevent political interference and protect whistle-blowers, Transparency International said Wednesday.
The watchdog group found serious problems with anticorruption efforts in Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
‘‘South Asia now is the worst region in the world when it comes to corruption based on our studies,’’ said Srirak
Plipat, the group’s regional director for Asia Pacific.
All six countries have public bodies charged with stopping corruption, but ‘‘their hands are tied by political control over the staff appointments and budget,’’ the group said in a report.
The group urged the governments of the six countries to strengthen their anticorruption agencies and judiciary by ensuring that appointments, transfers, and removal of the heads of the agencies are conducted independently.
The report also said that political interference means that the agencies are selective in conducting investigations, and are often powerless because they need approval before starting a probe.
In Nepal in 2013 the chief justice of the Supreme Court was appointed prime minister, which the group said blurred the line between executive and judicial powers.
Plipat said Transparency International will monitor India’s newly elected government to see if it follows its promise of cleaning up graft.
He just got sworn in.
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It's no laughing matter.
How odd it is where western manufacturers moved operations over the last three decades.
"UN report: 21 million in forced labor worldwide" Associated Press May 21, 2014
GENEVA — Forced labor produces illegal profits of $150 billion a year, the United Nations’ labor agency said Tuesday as it appealed for global eradication of the abuse.
The report by the International Labor Organization offered the agency’s fullest picture yet of an underground economy built on the involuntary toil of an estimated 21 million workers. It found that nearly two-thirds of the estimated profits, $99 billion, come from sexual exploitation, including prostitution and pornography.
Women were most commonly the victims of forced employment in sex-related trades and domestic chores, while men and boys were more commonly exploited in agricultural, mining, and construction work, it found.
The director general, Guy Ryder, said the report highlights the need ‘‘to eradicate this fundamentally evil but hugely profitable practice as soon as possible.’’ He said many governments, employers, and labor unions all need to do more to stamp out abusive employment practices, including outright slavery.
Slavery? In the 21st-century?
The report said the world’s most developed countries, including the entire European Union, accounted for nearly a third of the illegal profits, $46.9 billion, while the rest of the Asia Pacific region generated $51.8 billion.
Slavery in the EU?
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