{ "id": "R45733", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R45733", "active": true, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 599492, "date": "2019-05-21", "retrieved": "2019-12-20T19:06:07.741133", "title": "Combating Corruption in Latin America: Congressional Considerations", "summary": "Corruption of public officials in Latin America continues to be a prominent political concern. In the past few years, 11 presidents and former presidents in Latin America have been forced from office, jailed, or are under investigation for corruption. As in previous years, Transparency International\u2019s Corruption Perceptions Index covering 2018 found that the majority of respondents in several Latin American nations believed that corruption was increasing. Several analysts have suggested that heightened awareness of corruption in Latin America may be due to several possible factors: the growing use of social media to reveal violations and mobilize citizens, greater media and investor scrutiny, or, in some cases, judicial and legislative investigations. Moreover, as expectations for good government tend to rise with greater affluence, the expanding middle class in Latin America has sought more integrity from its politicians. U.S. congressional interest in addressing corruption comes at a time of this heightened rejection of corruption in public office across several Latin American and Caribbean countries. \nWhether or not the perception that corruption is increasing is accurate, it is nevertheless fueling civil society efforts to combat corrupt behavior and demand greater accountability. Voter discontent and outright indignation has focused on bribery and the economic consequences of official corruption, diminished public services, and the link of public corruption to organized crime and criminal impunity. In some countries, rejection of tainted political parties and leaders from across the spectrum has challenged public confidence in governmental legitimacy. In some cases, condemnation of corruption has helped to usher in populist presidents. For example, a populist of the left won Mexico\u2019s election and of the right Brazil\u2019s in 2018, as winning candidates appealed to end corruption and overcome political paralysis. \nThe 2017 U.S. National Security Strategy characterizes corruption as a threat to the United States because criminals and terrorists may thrive under governments with rampant corruption. Studies indicate that corruption lowers productivity and mars competitiveness in developing economies. When it is systemic, it can spur migration and reduce GDP measurably. \nThe U.S. government has used several policy tools to combat corruption. Among them are sanctions (asset blocking and visa restrictions) against leaders and other public officials to punish and deter corrupt practices, and programming and incentives to adopt anti-corruption best practices. The United States has also provided foreign assistance to some countries to promote clean or \u201cgood\u201d government goals. U.S. efforts include assistance to strengthen the rule of law and judicial independence, law enforcement training, programs to institutionalize open and transparent public sector procurement and other clean government practices, and efforts to tap private-sector knowledge to combat corruption. \nThis report examines U.S. strategies to help allies achieve anti-corruption goals, which were once again affirmed at the Summit of the Americas held in Peru in April 2018, with the theme of \u201cDemocratic Governance against Corruption.\u201d The case studies in the report explore\nBrazil\u2019s collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice and other international partners to expand investigations and use tools such as plea bargaining to secure convictions; \nMexico\u2019s efforts to strengthen protections for journalists and to protect investigative journalism generally, and mixed efforts to implement comprehensive reforms approved by Mexico\u2019s legislature; and\nthe experiences of Honduras and Guatemala with multilateral anti-corruption bodies to bolster weak domestic institutions, although leaders investigated by these bodies have tried to shutter them.\nSome analysts maintain that U.S. funding for \u201canti-corruption\u201d programming has been too limited, noting that by some definitions, worldwide spending in recent years has not exceeded $115 million annually. Recent congressional support for anti-corruption efforts includes training of police and justice personnel, backing for the Trump Administration\u2019s use of targeted sanctions, and other efforts to condition assistance. Policy debates have also highlighted the importance of combating corruption related to trade and investment. The 116th Congress may consider the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which would revise the NAFTA trade agreement, and contains a new chapter on anti-corruption measures.", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "active": true, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/R45733", "sha1": "0f892a47f73b30f6265e4a52e043ffa07275b9b0", "filename": "files/20190521_R45733_0f892a47f73b30f6265e4a52e043ffa07275b9b0.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=R/html/R45733_files&id=/0.png": "files/20190521_R45733_images_5f9fb9d82793c872cf763d80dfdf74d6c6a3ef57.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/R45733", "sha1": "c11e1b100742154d14b5d16f6341a1367a54bc99", "filename": "files/20190521_R45733_c11e1b100742154d14b5d16f6341a1367a54bc99.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] } ], "topics": [ "African Affairs", "Economic Policy", "Foreign Affairs", "Latin American Affairs" ] }