Multi-Stakeholder Workshop on the United Nations Convention against Corruption
2018-09-24 08:00 - 2018-09-27 17:00 UTC
We are pleased to inform you that the application process for the participation in the Multi-Stakeholder Workshop on the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and its Review Mechanism is now open! Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) based in Southeast Europe are invited to apply.

The Multi-stakeholder Workshop is a part of the Regional Programme on Strengthening the Capacity of Anti-corruption Authorities and Civil Society to Combat Corruption and Contribute to the UNCAC Review Process, which is implemented by RAI Secretariat in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), supported by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
The Multi-stakeholder Workshop will take place from 24 to 27 September 2018 in Belgrade, Serbia and will bring together representatives from civil society, governments and the private sector. The overall objective of the four-day workshop is: to train participants on the UNCAC provisions; to inform them on the methodology for country reviews; to build their capacity to work with the private sector and to reproduce the training at the local, national and regional level; and to initiate dialogue with government focal points.
Should you be interested in participating, please apply as soon as possible and by no later than Friday, 20 July 2018. For more information, please visit the following link.
To submit a complete application, you are required to complete the application form and send it along with the most recent CV of the representative who would be attending the workshop to the following email: unodc-ngounit@un.org . Only one representative per organization will be invited to attend, and his/her participation will be sponsored by the UNODC.
Priority will be given to CSOs from: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo (under UNSC 1244), Moldova, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia.
For more information please contact unodc-ngounit@un.org.

Negotiations Meeting on International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations
2018-10-03 08:00 - 2018-10-04 17:00
RAI Secretariat is pleased to inform that the Negotiation Meeting on International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations took place in Laxenburg – Vienna, Austria on 3-4 October, 2018.
It was hosted by the Ministry for Europe, Integration, and Foreign Affairs of Austria and organized by RAI Secretariat. The Meeting lasted for two days and attending delegations demonstrated commitment to the Treaty and were actively engaged in the discussions over the Treaty text. The atmosphere was very positive with excellent exchanges, resulting in an improved text of the Treaty.
RAI Secretariat is fully aware that there is a long road ahead, but successful completion of the 1st round of negotiations represents a major milestone in the process of enabling exchange of data for verification purposes in Southeast Europe. Bulgaria and Montenegro nominated their countries as potential hosts for the second negotiation meeting. Delegation of Serbia nominated Serbia as a potential depository of the Treaty.
Please see the Conclusions of the Meeting, as well as the final List of Participants.

The purpose of the International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations is to prevent and to combat corruption by providing for direct administrative exchange of information concerning asset declarations between the Parties of the Treaty. The Treaty will enable and streamline communication, and will simplify the present time-consuming processes in verification of public officials’ asset declaration. Respective anti-corruption bodies will be able to communicate formally to each other in an effective and efficient manner compared to the current state of affairs.
The basis of the Treaty is the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and its Resolution 6/4, which encourages Member States to consider the possibility of concluding multilateral agreements on civil and administrative matters relating to corruption, including international cooperation.
The Treaty has been developed under the Southeast Europe Regional Programme on Strengthening the Capacity of Anti-corruption Authorities and Civil Society to Combat Corruption and Contribute to the UNCAC Review Process, implemented by the Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative (RAI) in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and funded by Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
The Treaty has been prepared following three regional expert meetings, attended by the integrity/anti-corruption authorities and ministries of justice from the South East Europe held in Zagreb in 2015, Tirana in 2016 and Sofia in 2016 organized by Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) and hosted by respective national institutions. Significant contribution in developing the Treaty has been provided by the European Commission, UNODC, World Bank, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Basel Institute on Governance, Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) and the Regional School of Public Administration (ReSPA).
The Treaty has been endorsed by the Heads of Governments at the Western Balkans Summit, held in July 2017 in Trieste. The European Commission in its 2018 Communication on EU Enlargement Policy from April 17th, 2018, reaffirmed importance of the Treaty, as a mechanism which could contribute to improving the countries’ track record of dealing with corruption cases in the Western Balkans region.

Photo Gallery

Mostar, B&H: 2nd Training on Corruption Risk Assessment
2018-10-19 08:00 - 17:00
Agency for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of the Fight Against Corruption (APIK), in cooperation with Regional anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) Secretariat and Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) organized a 2nd Training on Corruption Risk Assessment for health care institutions in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton on 19 October 2018 in Mostar. The aim of the 2nd Training was to strengthening the capacities of health care institutions to identify healthcare-related corruption risks in order to carry out self-assessment effectively and develop their integrity plans. The training shall be further replicated by APIK in other administrative areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Training is organized under the Southeast Europe Regional Programme on Strengthening the Capacity of Anti-corruption Authorities and Civil Society to Combat Corruption and Contribute to the UNCAC Review Process, which is implemented by RAI in partnership with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and supported by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
For the Training Agenda please go here.
For the List of Participants please go here.
Photo Gallery

RAI Secretariat

Tirana Albania: 28th RAI Steering Group Meeting
2018-11-19 08:00 - 17:00
The 28th Steering Group Meeting of the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) took place in Tirana, Albania on November 19, 2018. The meeting was organized by the RAI Secretariat and chaired by the Chairperson Mr. Todor Kolarov.

Focus of the Steering Group Meeting was presentation and discussion about the amandmants to RAI Secretariat internal documents and procedures.
The meeting was an opportunity to exchange views with the Ministry of Justice of Albania. The Minister of Justice Ms. Etilda Gjonaj stressed that Albania has shown courage and commitment to policy development related to prevention of corruption, as well as in repression side, elaborating on the key elements of this process.
Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, Head of Secretariat informed the Steering Group about main activities of the Secretariat for past several months and announced activities to take place in the following period. The particular focus was given to the past and future activities related to International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations and its adoption.
Steering Group adopted the proposed 2019 RAI core budget.
Summary, Conclusions and Decisions

Sofia, Bulgaria: Regional Forum of the Ministries of Interior/Security on Counteraction to Internal Corruption
2018-11-26 08:00 - 2018-11-27 17:00
Following one of the main priorities of the recent Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union – the European perspective of the Western Balkans, the Ministry of Interior of Bulgaria was pleased to announce a Regional forum of the Ministries of Interior/Security on Counteraction to Internal Corruption. The event took place on 26-27 November 2018 in Sofia and included a ministerial meeting in the afternoon of 26 November, followed by professional discussions on 27 November. The main aim of the political discussion was to support to the operational cooperation in the counteraction to internal corruption, as well as to discuss the opportunities to enhance further our common activities in the counteraction to corruption at regional level.

Strengthening the fight against corruption forms an integral part of the commitments for achieving European standards of cooperation in the area of home affairs, stated during the meeting of the Ministers of Interior/Security of the Western Balkans on 12 April 2018 in Sofia. At the initiative of Bulgaria, a Network for Enhanced Regional Cooperation of Internal Security Units (NERCISU) was established in 2016, with the participation of the relevant units of the Ministries of Interior/Police of Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, Serbia and Macedonia. The Network functions as a platform for active operational regional cooperation with 24/7 hotline for coordination and exchange of information and intelligence.
For more information, please contact Bulgarian Ministry of Interior, EU and International Cooperation Directorate at: eu2018bg@mvr.bg.

Bucharest, Romania: Peer-to-Peer Visit to Romanian Authorities
2018-12-04 08:00 - 2018-12-06 17:00
AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe) and RAI Secretariat (Regional Anti-corruption Initiative) partnered up to implement a 2-year Regional Project on asset recovery titled “Strengthening the anti-corruption in the Western Balkans through improving asset seizure measures”. The Project is financed by the UK Government and supported by Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

The Regional Project is designed on the basis of comprehensive review and analysis of search, seizure and confiscation of illegally obtained assets conducted by AIRE Centre and RAI Secretariat. The review served as a scoping exercise and provided the baseline for development of the Regional Project. The outcomes of the comprehensive review have been endorsed by the key stakeholders from the Region at the Regional Conference on Strengthening Cooperation in the Field of Asset Recovery in Sarajevo, BiH on 28 March 2018.
The first activity within the Regional Project was a Peer-to-Peer Visit that took place in Romania from 4-6 December 2018. The purpose of the Peer-to-Peer Visit was to learn first-hand about the best practices and experiences of Romanian Authorities, and to share different perspectives on implementation of asset recovery measures among the participants from the Southeast Europe Region. The Peer-to-Peer Visit enabled participants to gain better understanding of the modalities and mechanisms in the field of asset recovery and increase awareness about available legal and practical solutions, but also identify main challenges. The Visit was attended by representatives of prosecution services and asset recovery/management institutions from the region.
During the visit, the participants had an opportunity to visit the following institutions in Romania: National Agency for the Management of Seized Assets – ANABI, Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – DIICOT, National Anti-Corruption Directorate – DNA, and the General Prosecutor’s office. Representatives of the above mentioned national institutions shared their invaluable experiences and know-how with the participants.
Additional Documents:
List of Participants
Peer-to-Peer Visit Programme
Photo Gallery:

BiH – International Anti-Corruption Day
2018-12-07 08:00 - 17:00
Marking the International Anti-Corruption Day – 9 December, the Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of the Fight against Corruption of Bosnia and Herzegovina organized the conference in Sarajevo, on 7 December.
One of the speakers on the panel Prevention of Corruption and Bosnia and Herzegovina – challenges and achievements, was Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, Head of RAI Secretariat.
The conference gathered representatives of national institutions, diplomatic community, international organizations, colleagues from the region, civil society and academia focused on prevention of corruption in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Event Agenda (in local language)

Belgrade, Serbia, Conference “Implementation of Corruption Prevention Mechanisms”
2018-12-13 08:00 - 2018-12-14 17:00
Recognizing the vital importance of international and regional co-operation among national anticorruption bodies in addressing corruption preventing mechanisms, the Anti-Corruption Agency of Serbia, with support of the OSCE Mission to Serbia and the Embassy of Italy in Serbia organized this Conference to facilitate the exchange of best practices and knowledge among anti-corruption practitioners, and to provide a forum for further discussion of development of preventive measures in the key areas of fight against corruption.

Mr. Vladan Joksimović, Head of the Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative Secretariat spoke on the Panel dedicated to Assets and Income Declaration in the Regional Context – Next Steps on the Way Forward.
Agenda of the Conference

One-day follow-up meeting for around 30 Civil Society and Private Sector representatives from the region
2019-02-01 08:00 - 17:00
In order to further the momentum generated by Multi-Stakeholder Workshop on the United Nations Convention against Corruption, UNODC togehter with RAI Secretariat held a one-day follow-up meeting for around 30 civil society and private sector representatives from the region on Friday 1 February 2019 in Belgrade, Serbia. The Meeting is supported by the Austrian Development Agency as part of the South East Europe Regional Programme on Strengthening the Capacity of Anti-corruption Authorities and Civil Society to Combat Corruption and Contribute to the UNCAC Review Process.

The participants affirmed the fundamental importance of promoting the active participation of individuals and groups outside the public sector in the prevention of and the fight against corruption and raising public awareness regarding the existence, causes and gravity of and the threat posed by corruption, as stipulated by Article 12 and 13 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC).

Agenda of the meeting
UNODC and RAI teams used the opportunity to to hold a coordination/planning session regarding our current and next Regional Programme. The meeting resulted in seting targets and actions for the coming period as well as long term milestones.

29th RAI Steering Group Meeting – 12 March Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
2019-03-12 08:00 - 17:00
The 29th Steering Group Meeting of the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina on March 12th, 2019. The meeting was organized by the RAI Secretariat and chaired by the Head of Secretariat Mr. Vladan Joksimovic.

Focus of the Steering Group Meeting was selection of the new Anti-corruption Expert, as well as presentation and discussion about the amendments to RAI Secretariat internal documents. Please find the following documents for more information.
Agenda of the Meeting
Summary, Conclusions and Decisions

RAI Secretariat

2nd Negotiation Meeting on Draft Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declaration
2019-03-27 08:00 - 17:00
The 2nd Negotiation Meeting on Draft Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declaration was held in Podgorica, Montenegro organized by RAI Secretariat and hosted by the Ministry of Justice of Montenegro. The Meeting is supported by the Austrian Development Agency as part of the South East Europe Regional Programme on Strengthening the Capacity of Anti-corruption Authorities and Civil Society to Combat Corruption and Contribute to the UNCAC Review Process.

Participating delegations agreed upon a final draft of the International Treaty, for full text please go to following LINK. The Treaty text is accompanied by the comprehensive Explanatory Note.
As the next step, the International Treaty shall be signed at a ceremony foreseen in the second half of 2019. The Treaty is also open for signature or accession outside of the SEE region.
Please see the Agenda of the Meeting, Conclusions of the Meeting, as well as the final List of Participants.

Podgorica, MNE: Workshop on Whistleblowing in the Security Sector
2019-05-07 08:00 - 2019-05-08 17:00
The Regional Workshop on Whistleblowing in the Security Sector took place on 7-8 May 2019 in Podgorica, Montenegro. The Workshop was organized by the Centre for Security Cooperation (RACVIAC) in partnership with the Ministry of Defence of Montenegro and the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI).

South East European countries continue to face a number of challenges including corruption, lack of independence and impartiality of the judiciary and the prioritization of business interests over political integrity. The security sector is particularly vulnerable since it has to address corruption but ensure that security is not at risk. One of the measures that addresses the process of integrity building and related issues is the protection of whistleblowers. Although considered a controversial topic according to a recent publication of the Centre for Integrity in the Defence Sector (CIDS) the restriction of the ‘right to know’ on the grounds of confidentiality of state secrets sets the democratic legitimacy of secrecy against the democratic legitimacy of transparency which is more inherent to the notion of representative democracy.
Furthermore, the latest publication produced by the Southeast Coalition on Protection of Whistleblowers confirms the survey findings and claims that evidence shows that new laws do not always protect citizens and employees from being fired, demoted, harassed, sued or even prosecuted. These findings are being leveraged to close dangerous legislative gaps that expose whistleblowers to career, personal and financial ruin. Therefore, strengthened protection mechanisms are needed to bring about solutions to these and other challenges. Developing stronger rights of and protection for whistleblowers have been recognized and cited by Transparency International, EU, OECD and many others as essential elements of curbing corruption in the SEE region.
The objective of this two-day Workshop was to increase the capacity of the security sector in the field of integrity and corruption prevention as well as to increase awareness about innovative anti-corruption mechanisms but also the needed legal solutions and regulatory measures on whistleblower protection.
Opening the Workshop RACVIAC Director MG (ret.) Jeronim Bazo said: “Due to its specifies the field of defense has been identified as an area with high risks for misconducts and corruption. Public procurement, conflict of interest, financial control and data protection have been acknowledged as particularly vulnerable processes. In this respect, further actions and support to the respective authorities in South East Europe in strengthening their institutional integrity and resilience is needed.” He continued by saying: “The protection of reporting persons – whistleblowers – has been identified as one of the biggest challenges for all governments in South East Europe. I expect that all experts that have gathered here today will use the opportunity this Workshop provides to exchange experiences and best practices, to address the common challenges in the region, but also to further develop mutual contacts and networks among the participants from South East Europe. In accordance with RACVIAC mission to foster dialogue and cooperation on security matters in SEE, including corruption fighting, we see this Workshop as an excellent opportunity to coordinate efforts in this field”, concluded MG (ret.) Bazo.
In his opening remarks Mr Andrej Lakić, Head of the International Cooperation Department, Defense Policy and Planning Directorate, Ministry of Defense of Montenegro, said that Montenegro has adopted a number of laws aimed at combating corruption and organized crime in compliance with obligations arising from the ratification of international conventions and membership organizations within the field of prevention and fight against corruption. However, much remains to be done to develop a climate of openness and integrity that enables effective whistleblower protection, he emphasized.
Speaking on behalf of the co-organizer, Mr Vladan Joksimović, Head of Secretariat, Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative, said: “Significant steps have been made in the corruption prevention field: anti-corruption assessment of laws, corruption risk assessment in public institutions and protection of whistleblowers being at the forefront. Nevertheless, corruption remains a major threat to economic growth, stability and security in South East Europe. I am sure we can all agree that this is a reality as much as it is a perception. Corruption cannot be dealt with by individual governments only, and regional cooperation on anti-corruption has to be further strengthened.” Although some progress is evident at the national level, Mr Joksimović underlined that there is still a lot of work ahead because the implementation does not match legislation.
Being aware of the fact that integrity building in defence and security areas presents one of the common challenges in the region RACVIAC – Centre for Security Cooperation, Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative and the Ministry of Defence of Montenegro have been implementing joint activities in the last couple of years. The first activity that looked into the emerging trends and experiences in the field of whistleblowing was conducted in 2016 and this year’s event presents a continuation of dialogue and exchanging of experiences.
The event gathers national professionals in the security sector who manage whistleblowing cases and implement whistleblowing policies at national level.
The Workshop is envisaged as an active and vibrant environment that will enable all the participants to share their knowledge and experience and to learn about the topics from peers in the security sector.
You can find the Final Agenda and List of Participants here.
Presentation Mevludin Dzindo, APIK B&H
Photo Gallery

For additional information, please contact RAI Secretariat on info@rai-see.org.

Becici, MNE: Training on Effective Asset Recovery: Legal Standards and Good Practices
2019-05-14 08:00 - 2019-05-15 17:00
The AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe) and Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative (RAI) organised a regional event for judges and prosecutors on effective asset recovery as part of a wider project to bolster the fight against corruption and organised crime in the South East Europe.

The two-day event includes training sessions conducted by regional and international experts, including academic experts on criminonolgy and security studies, a former judge on the European Court of Human Rights, and a judge of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Serbia. Over thirty participants includes senior judges and prosecutors from the Western Balkans and across South East Europe.

British Ambassador to Montenegro, Alison Kemp pointed out that today’s conference “helps turn the intent of regional co-operation into reality, by further strengthening expertise amongst prosecutors and judges in the field of asset recovery, facilitating the exchange of good practices in this respect in the South East Europe”. She added that “given that this region has broadly similar legal systems and encounters similar challenges, I am confident that a regional approach is beneficial, including exchanges of expertise, discussions of common challenges and opportunities to exchange best practice”. “Crime knows of no borders, so institutional cooperation between countries of the region in this area should be equally close”, Ambassador Kemp stated and emphasised that the United Kingdom supports these efforts, and that the UK is keen to share their experience in fighting corruption, and remains committed to working with partners in the Western Balkans and supporting these important reform processes.
The AIRE Centre Programme Manager for the Western Balkans, Biljana Braithwaite, noted that “organised crime and corruption is a blight affecting every State and society in the world. Effective asset recovery measures are a crucial weapon in the arsenal of prosecutors and courts everywhere to stop ongoing criminality and deter future wrongdoing. The AIRE Centre is delighted to be working in collaboration with RAI, and with the support of the UK Government, on this project. We want to give prosecutors and judges an opportunity to further strengthen their knowledge and a platform for increased international cooperation, thus contributing to more effective implementation of asset recovery legislative frameworks throughout the region.”
The event is the first of three training events on the topic of effective asset recovery, held as part of a two-year regional project organised by the AIRE Centre and RAI entitled “Strengthening anti-corruption in South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures” (the Regional Anticorruption Project). The Regional Anticorruption Project is funded by the UK Government and supported by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. The Project began in November 2018 and will run until November 2020.
The Regional Anti-corruption Project is focussed on fostering regional cooperation through strengthening the capacities of prosecutors and courts to engage in effective asset recovery, developing international and regional cooperation in the asset recovery process, and addressing the strong negative public perception that surrounds the fight against corruption and organised crime throughout the region.

Rome, Italy – NATO Foundation, Balkan Perspectives: Adapting the partnership and integration paths
2019-05-16 08:00 - 17:00
The conference was organised by the NATO Defense College Foundation with the support of the NATO Public Diplomacy Division and the NATO Defense College.
KFOR, now entering its second decade, has been the longest and the most successful stabilisation mission of NATO since the end of the Cold War. Yet, while peace is a tangible benefit for the Balkans, Euro-Atlantic integration and NATO partnerships have to face complex regional and national politics.
A quick look at the area shows the current conundrum: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia and Kosovo risk to be an unfinished job; two NATO members – Albania and Montenegro – are experiencing some rough political moment and North Macedonia has to face the nitty gritty of overcoming past legacies. Cooperative security has been essential in tackling FYROM’s last transitional crisis, but regional realities require a more multifaceted approach to confront consolidated problems like organised crime, trafficking of human being, corruption, energy security of supply and terrorism.
The conference was structured into three panels.
The first panel outlined the setbacks facing the Balkans in terms of democratic and economic progress, as well as in terms of hybrid internal and external threats. It further discussed how regional societies and governments, assisted by the international community’s tools – among the others, by NATO’s Partnership for Peace (PfP) – could deal with such challenges.
The second one aimed at addressing the Balkan scenario from the wider perspective of EU/NATO integration, which remains the main vehicle towards the achievement of a regional balance, even though the accession prospect does not seem sufficient to address all local shortcomings.
The third discussed the need to better coordinate common resources and efforts to address regional challenges and strengthen the stability and security of the area.
The head of RAI Secretariat Mr. Vladan Joksimovic has been invited as a speaker in the third session where he talked about: Implementing anti-corruption measures by political and moral suasion. Results achieved, shortcomings and future opportunities.

London, UK: Asset Recovery Project, Peer-to-Peer Visit to the British Authorities
2019-05-20 08:00 - 2019-05-24 17:00
AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe) and RAI Secretariat partnered up to implement a 2-year Regional Project on asset recovery titled “Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures” (the Regional Anti-corruption Project). The Peer-to-Peer Visit to the national authorities in the UK took place on 20-24 May. It is the second and final Peer-to-Peer visit organised within the Regional Project.

The objective of the Peer-to-Peer Visit is to learn first-hand about the best practices and experiences of UK Authorities, and thus to increase the capacity of practitioners, prosecutors and judges in the SEE region to fight corruption and organized through applying in practices asset recovery measures. The Peer-to-Peer Visit will enable participants to gain better understanding of the modalities and mechanisms in the field of asset recovery applied in the UK.

Skopje, Macedonia: Regional Mutual Legal Assistance and Asset Recovery Training
2019-06-11 08:00 - 2019-06-13 17:00
Regional Anti-corruption Initiative Secretariat held a three-day Regional Mutual Legal Assistance and Asset Recovery Training in Skopje, North Macedonia from 11th to 13th June 2019.

The overarching objective of the training was to enhance the abilities of the participants to provide and request successful international cooperation in transnational crime cases, in particular relating to asset tracing, freezing and confiscation. The design of the training was based on interactive methods and interventions. It included provision of tools & templates and the consolidating of the learning through an engaging interactive and immersive exercise using unique specialist software (View360 Global™) that has already been successfully used in nine other jurisdictions worldwide.
The training is developed for prosecutors, judges and experts from the International Cooperation Departments at the Ministries of Justice who have experience and work on asset recovery cases. Therefore, the nominated participants were able to take active part in the exercises of the workshop.
There will be one more training organised within the framework of the Project in October 2019. The training is organized within the regional project “Strengthening Anti-Corruption in South East Europe through Improving Asset Seizure Measures” with the support of UK Government and Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
Please see the Final Agenda of the training.
Gallery

For more information please contact RAI Secretariat on info@rai-see.org

Sarajevo, B&H: 14th RAI Summer School for Junior Anti-corruption Practitioners from SEE
2019-06-30 08:00 - 2019-07-04 17:00
The 14th Annual Summer School for Junior Anti-corruption Practitioners from South East Europe took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina from 30 June till 04 July. The topic of the 2019 Summer School edition was “Investigation of corruption cases- Innovative mechanisms and tools”.
Participants at the Summer School were young public servants coming from all the RAI member countries. They passed one week of intensive study, obtaining theoretical knowledge and practical skills from honorable experts on contemporary and innovative investigation mechanism and tools and on recovering proceeds of crime. They also had to learn from each other on regional practices. 14 Edition of the RAI Summer Junior School was honored to have the High Council and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina, (HCPC) as a hosting institution.
July 1st – Summer School Day 1
Opening remarks were given by Ms. Gordana Tadic, Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina who emphasized the importance of the RAI Summer Junior School as a forum for exchange of views and experiences among young practitioners from the field in the SEE region, especially nowadays when the corruption gets more sophisticated forms which require specialized knowledge and skills in investigation and prosecution of these cases and more enhanced cross- boarder and international cooperation.
The representative from the HCPC, Mr. Admir Suljagic presented the ongoing activities and the projects towards enhancing the independence and competence of the national judiciary.
The Head of the RAI Secretariat, Mr. Vladan Joksimovic presented the on going and upcoming activities of the RAI, the most important of them being the assistance of the anti corruption bodies in the region in developing of preventive anti-corruption tools, corruption risk assessment and corruption proofing of laws, then the role of RAI in facilitating the upcoming signature of the International Treaty on Exchange of data for the Verification of Asset Declarations, and the negotiation process with the EC on the new project on integrity and whistleblowing systems. He addressed the participants to the lots of RAI useful publications and handbooks of various fields of the RAI mission and scope of work, posted on the website of the RAI.
During the working part of the Summer School, Ms. Aneta Arnaudovska, the RAI Anti-corruption Expert gave an overview on the key international anti –corruption standards with a focus on the criminalization of corruption, analysis of the most often problems in investigation and prosecution of corruption – related cases, in proving the elements of the offences, problems in detecting and securing the evidence for proofing the crimes which mostly are indirect, the challenges coming from the newly adopted criminal procedural codes in the states in the SEE which introduced a new type of a prosecutorial investigation, the need for a tailored training for Implementation of the ECHR standards in obtaining lawful evidence and conducting the trials.
Ms. Desislava Gotskova, the RAI Project Manager, explained the international legal framework and the legal concepts as well the situation with their implementation in the field of asset recovery and confiscation of assets, the fact that the cases of seizure of asset and final confiscation orders are very rare in the SEE region, explained the current problems and gaps and encouraged the audience towards more frequent conducting financial investigations as most effective tools in fighting organized crime and corruption. She provided the participants with the latest publication on Asset recovery issued in the framework of the RAI regional project “Strengthening Anti-Corruption in South East Europe through Improving Asset Seizure Measures” with the support of UK Government and Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
The most interesting part on the first day of the School was the “ tour de table”session, whereas the representatives from each of the states presented and discussed national good practices related to the successful processing of corruption cases. The participants presented a plenty of interesting cases of corruption, prosecuted and adjudicated in their respective countries, in various areas such as : government, judiciary, regular police, boarder police, forest industry and agriculture, public procurement, health sector, thus witnessing that the corruption is a widespread phenomenon and has entered in all pores of the society which pushes forward a strong coordinated and comprehensive action and cooperation, both national and international. The participants gave an overview on the competences of the national anti corruption agencies which, in many cases had played the crucial role in investigating the high –profile corruption cases. They lively discussed the need for lawfully obtaining the investigative tools and methods in line with the human rights standards and the necessity for promoting the system of whistleblowers and encouraging the citizens to report corruption in order to increase the effective investigation and prosecution of these cases and confiscation of proceeds of the crimes.
Day Two and Three
RAI participants were pleased to receive training from Lawrie Day and Warren Barlow of AML Consulting (Global) Ltd. First of all, they were introduced into the matter of developing financial intelligence in corruption cases through presentations on relationship of corruption to terrorism and the importance of the OSINT (Open Source to Develop Financial Intelligence) platform as a tool in the financial investigations of corruption cases and money laundering cases. The experts delivered an interactive exercise on the company’s own immersive platform, View360 Global™. The bespoke exercise focused on a regional based corruption case study that featured aspects of terrorist financing and followed inputs on the topics of the relationship between corruption and terrorism the previous day by the two Subject Matter Experts.
The View360 Global™ platform enabled the participants from 11 jurisdictions to participate using their own language which is translated to the facilitators in English. This innovative method of interactive training has been used by AML Consulting (Global) Ltd in 11 countries and was last used this month in Skopje when AML Consulting (Global) delivered a 3 day workshop on international cooperation, mutual legal assistance and asset recovery for the Regional Anti Corruption Initiative under the auspices of another regional asset recovery project.
A presentation of the national practice in prosecution of corruption cases was held by the Prosecutor from at the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Mirza Hukeljic, PhD.
The last day ( 4 th July) of the School, the attendees got the certificates after taking an evaluation test and finalized their participation with a visit to the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council.
Young practitioners from the SEE had the pleasure to participate at the RAI Summer Junior School, which for the first time has been organized in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the part of the social program, they will use the unique opportunity to feel the traditional hospitality of their hosts and will establish a longstanding professional networking and friendship.
Please see the Summer School Agenda for more details on its content.

Vilnius, Lithuania: TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL 2019
2019-07-08 08:00 - 2019-07-14 17:00
Transparency International welcomes individuals from public, private, non-governmental and academic sectors, from all academic backgrounds. Transparency School does not discriminate its applicants on the grounds of race, color, national origin, disability, sex, gender identity, religion, political beliefs, marital, familial or parental status, sexual orientation or any other basis.We are delighted to announce that applications to the Transparency School 2019 are now open.
Transparency School is the leading summer course on anti-corruption in the world. Since 2010, it has already welcomed more than 1000 future leaders from around 120 countries worldwide. We would like to kindly ask you to disseminate this information to your colleagues and those potentially interested in attending the event on 8-14 July 2019.
Please find more information below in this email and at www.transparencyschool.org.

30th RAI Steering Group Meeting – 24th and 25th September in Skopje, North Macedonia
2019-09-24 08:00 - 2019-09-25 17:00
The 30th Steering Group Meeting of the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) took place in Skopje, North Macedonia on September 24th and 25th, 2019. The meeting was organized by the RAI Secretariat.

Focus of the Steering Group Meeting was the election of the new RAI Chairperson as well as presentation and discussion about the amendments to RAI Secretariat internal documents. Please find the following documents for more information.
Agenda of the 30th SG Meeting
30th SG Summary, Conclusions and Decisions

Tirana, Albania: Second round 3-days training on International Cooperation
2019-10-15 08:00 - 2019-10-17 17:00
The Second Round of 3-days Regional Training on Mutual Legal Assistance and Asset Recovery, organized by the Advice on Individual Rights in Europe (AIRE) Centre and Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) Secretariat is a continuation of the Regional Mutual Legal Assistance and Asset Recovery Training held on 11-13 June 2019 in Skopje, Macedonia. The training has been opened by Ms. Fjoralba Caka – deputy Minister of Justice of Albania.
Prosecutors and experts from Ministries of Justice selected by the judicial training institutes and the respective Ministries from Albania, Bosna and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo*, Montenegro, Moldova, North Macedonia and Serbia took part in the training. The training aimed to enhance the abilities of the participants, to provide and request successful international cooperation in transnational crime cases, in particular relating to asset tracing, freezing and confiscation.
The training was organized within the regional project “Strengthening Anti-Corruption in South East Europe through Improving Asset Seizure Measures” funded by the UK Government and supported by Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

Belgrade, Serbia: Second round of 2-days training on effective asset recovery
2019-11-28 08:00 - 2019-11-29 17:00
AIRE Centre (Advice on Individual Rights in Europe) and RAI Secretariat partnered up to implement a 2-year Regional Project on asset recovery titled “Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures” (the Regional Anti-corruption Project). The announced Training is a continuation of the Training on Effective Asset Recovery: Legal Standards and Good Practices held on 14 – 15 May, 2019 in Becici, Montenegro.

The training is the second in the series of three sessions on the topic of effective asset recovery organized within the framework of the two-years Regional Anti-corruption Project. It further builds up expertise among prosecutors and judges from South East Europe in the field of asset recovery and facilitates the exchange of good practices.

The training focused on international and European legal standards and the European Court of Human Rights case-law in the field of asset recovery in order to foster the implementation of the asset recovery measures in practice. Prominent UK and international experts, as well as experts from the region shared their experience with prosecutors, judges and practitioners, specialized in asset recovery from Albania, Bulgaria, Bosna and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo*, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia.
The training`s aim was to build national training resources related to good practices in conducting financial investigations and effective asset freezing and seizure, European and UN standards, ECHR implementation, and facilitate the exchange of knowledge amongst peers, across the Western Balkan region.
The sessions focused on specific issues which are of concern to the whole region (such as more effective use of extended confiscation, financial investigations, evidentiary threshold for asset recovery etc.).

International Conference on ‘Counter Corruption Best Practices – Increased Effectiveness through Interagency and Multi-Sectoral Approaches’ – March 07-10, 2011 – Zagreb, Croatia
2020-03-07 08:00 - 2020-03-10 17:00
The International Conference on ”Counter Corruption Best Practices – Increased Effectiveness through Interagency and Multi-Sectoral Approaches” took place on March 07-10, 2011, in Zagreb, Croatia. The event was co-organized by the United States Department of State Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs and the George Marshall European Center for Security Studies in cooperation with the United States Department of State Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.
The workshop provided ground to participants to present different governmental approach and activities towards curbing corruption at all levels. Among the main Conference goals were to increase awareness of US and European counter corruption programs, current best practices and initiatives in Europe, including at the sub-regional level, within an audience of both US and European governmental officials engaged in fighting corruption work. The focus was put on the support for counter corruption initiatives through strengthening the links among US missions in Europe and between US missions and local institutions involved in anti-corruption efforts. RAI Secretariat was represented by Mr. Stanislav Aleksandrov – Anti-Corruption Expert, who was speaker in the panel dedicated to ”Leveraging Partners’ Resources – Contributions of other Organizations”.

RAI School for Junior Anti-Corruption Practitioners in the SEE
2020-10-05 08:00 - 2020-10-15 17:00
RAI in cooperation with the Judicial Academy of Croatia and the UNODC Global Judicial Integrity Group and with the support of the Central European Initiative (CEI) organized the 15th Edition of the School for young anti-corruption practitioners from Southeast Europe (online) as a series of 4 webinars under the general topic: “Promoting Integrity in Processing Corruption Cases” in the period of 5-15 October 2020 as interactive lectures from the distinguished experts in specific areas such as corruption risk assessment, corruption proofing of legislation, integrity and conflict of interest, whistleblowing, asset declarations and on investigation, prosecution and adjudication of the corruption cases and asset recovery. In parallel, during the tour-de-table participants shared experiences and best practices in the field of integrity risks and how to improve the professional integrity.
Target participants were young representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Kosovo*, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, and Serbia (maximum of three representatives from each jurisdiction. Suggested profiles: two representatives from the national judiciary (one judge, one prosecutor) and one participant from anti-corruption bodies and were selected through RAI Steering Group members.
The webinars were as follows:
Webinar One: Corruption Preventive Tools/Asset Disclosure- October 5, 2020, Monday, 13-16h (CEST)
Webinar Two: Integrity and Conflict of Interest/Whistleblowing Protection in the SEE region and other comparative experiences, October 8, 2020, Thursday, 13-16h (CEST)
Webinar Three: Processing Corruption Cases/Asset recovery, October 12, 2020, Monday, 13-16h (CEST)
Webinar Four: Disclosure of conflict of interest/Financial disclosure for judges and prosecutors-October, 15, 2020, Thursday, 13-17h (CEST)
For more details, please see the report from RAI’s first virtual school here.
RAI 2020 School concept and the agenda is available here.
___________________________________________
*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244(1999) and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

Meeting of the SEE Coalition on Whistleblower Protection
2020-11-30 08:00 - 17:00
The Southeast Europe Coalition on Whistleblower Protection (hereinafter: the Coalition) held its first video Annual Meeting on 30 November 2020, with the support of the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative Secretariat (RAI Secretariat), provided under its EU funded project ‘Breaking the Silence: Enhancing whistleblowing policies and culture in Western Balkans and Moldova’ (hereinafter: the Project). The meeting was hosted by one of the members of the Coalition, the Center for the Study of Democracy and Governance from Albania.
At the meeting, RAI Secretariat presented activities and results of the Project to date, which included a presentation of findings and recommendations of the gap analysis of the whistleblowing legislative frameworks in the project’s beneficiary jurisdictions in line with the EU Directive on the protection of persons who report breaches of [European] Union law” (“EU whistleblowing rules”). In addition, the meeting provided a panel for the members of the Coalition to discuss the results of their recent efforts in whistleblowing campaigning for fighting corruption in the region.
By first thanking RAI for a continued support to the Coalition’s work, Mr. Arjan Dyrmishi, the Coordinator of the Coalition, who moderated the meeting, talked about the increased visibility of the Coalition, emphasizing the significant impact it provided in the adoption of new whistleblowing laws, improvements in legislative mechanisms in the protection of whistleblowers, and in investigations of whistleblowing cases.
The Head of RAI Secretariat, Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, welcomed the participants by emphasizing the continued commitment of RAI Secretariat to whistleblower protection, the collaboration with the Coalition and regional exchange of expertise and experiences in improving whistleblower protection in SEE.
The Project Manager, Ms. Elmerina Ahmetaj Hrelja, and Project Officer, Ms. Amra Softic, spoke about major goals and activities of the Project, as well as efforts to raise public awareness about whistleblowing as an anti-corruption tool. These included a Project infographic, project-branded protective masks, pilot survey on youth views and understanding about whistleblowing, which was first tested in Bosnia and Herzegovina, ending with the presentation of the video story Breaking the Silence – Youth Video featuring a fantastic group of young people from the SEE and their messages why young people, as creators of positive changes, should not keep silent when it comes to whistleblowing.
Mr. Mark Worth, RAI Secretariat Whistleblowing Expert led the panel discussion of members of the Coalition on challenges in whistleblower protection in SEE, and measures undertaken to address them. These measures included: the provision of alternate whistleblower disclosure channels (online, anonymous, and confidential), the provision of advice and support to whistleblowers via hot-lines, monitoring and reporting about challenges in the enforcement of whistleblower protection laws and advocacy for their improvement.
The meeting ended on a high note by Ms. Elmerina Ahmetaj Hrelja who emphasized the importance of continued collaboration between RAI Secretariat and the Coalition in order to address real needs in the field and achieve synergy of efforts – all for the benefit of SEE societies because protecting whistleblowers means protecting the public interest.
The support of the RAI Secretariat to the establishment and growth of the SEE Coalition on Whistleblower Protection created an additional impetus and turned the tide for whistleblowing in the SEE Region.
Family Photo from the South East Europe Coalition on Whistleblower Protection 2020 Annual Meeting held November 30, 2020

Online Presentation of the Report “Effective Implementation of Asset Recovery Measures in the Western Balkans: an overview of a regional monitoring methodology, key benchmarks and case studies of good practice”
2020-12-09 08:00 - 17:00
On the occasion of the Internal Anti-corruption Day, the Regional Anti-corruption Initiative (RAI) Secretariat and the Advice on Individual Rights in Europe (AIRE) Centre, with the support of the UK Government and Konrad Adenauer Foundation presented the report “Effective Implementation of Asset Recovery Measures in the Western Balkans: an overview of a regional monitoring methodology, key benchmarks and case studies of good practice”. The report in English and in the regional languages is available HERE.
The event was opened by Ms. Biljana Braitwaithe, Western Balkans Programme Director at the AIRE Centre, Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, Head of RAI Secretariat and H.E. Matthew Field, British Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In the role of the field expert, Professor Eldan Mujanovic of the University of Sarajevo, Faculty of Criminalistics presented the findings of the report. Ms. Radmila Dragicevic – Dicic, Judge of the Supreme Court of Cassation of Republic of Serbia presented a case study of good practice, providing a comment on the relevant legislation in Serbia in relation to the adjudication in cases involving asset seizure.

The First Alumni Meeting under the Regional Anti-Corruption Project
2020-12-15 08:00 - 17:00
Following the restriction policies and measures over the COVID-19 situation in Southeast Europe, the First Regional Alumni Meeting organized under the Regional Anti-Corruption Project was held online. Judges, prosecutors, and asset recovery practitioners from SEE who have participated and contributed to the project discussed the establishment of the Regional Alumni Network with the aim to foster and improve regional cooperation in asset recovery cases.
Participants have underscored the importance of the establishment of the Regional Network, with a special focus on making the resources developed in the course of the project broadly available to the asset recovery practitioners in the region. They have also recognised the value of broadening the membership of this network to include not only prosecutors and judges but also the law enforcement agencies and financial investigators.
The meeting was organised within the framework of the two-year regional project “Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures” implemented by RAI Secretariat and AIRE Centre, with the financial support of the UK Government.

Kick-off Meeting of the new joint Regional Programme “Southeast Europe - Together Against Corruption” - SEE-TAC
2021-01-27 11:00 - 12:30
Sarajevo, Vienna, January 27, 2021 – With today’s kick-off event, the Regional Anti-Corruption Initiative (RAI) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have officially launched the new anti-corruption programme in Southeast Europe (SEE), entitled Southeast Europe – Together Against Corruption (SEE-TAC). The Regional Programme is funded by Austrian Development Cooperation (ADC), represented by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA).
The event was attended by over 80 representatives of the public anti-corruption authorities, ministries, civil society organisations and the private sector representatives from the SEE region and beyond. Thirteen speakers from the implementing organisations, the donor and beneficiary institutions have reflected on the importance of the new Regional Programme which aims to strengthen the resilience of SEE societies to corruption.
This programme will focus on Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, with participation of Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia. The three-year programme will operate with a total budget of 1,400,000 euros.
Michaela Flenner, Programme Manager of the Austrian Development Agency for the SEE Region said “ADA is happy to see that the idea of programmatic partnership between the RAI and the UNODC continues through the SEE-TAC Programme”.
Under the auspices of the SEE-TAC Programme, 25 public institutions, 40 business representatives and 175 civil society representatives, with the UNCAC Coalition and the WB6 Chamber Investment Forum as special partners, will be working together on the implementation of a wide range of activities.
Virginia de Abajo Marques, UNODC Anti-corruption Advisor underlined the essence of the SEE-TAC revolving around the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), the only legally binding universal anti-corruption instrument, and in particular its articles 12 and 13, which recognise the role of the private sector and civil society in combating corruption.
SEE-TAC, as a comprehensive cross-sectoral action which brings together practitioners and activists from the SEE in strengthening their capacity to fight and prevent corruption, was presented by Aneta Arnaudovska, RAI’ Senior Anti-corruption Advisor, Dejana Grbic-Velagic, RAI’s Chief Programme and Communications Officer and Viktorija Nesterovaite, UNODC Programme Officer.
The Programme pairs the operationalisation of the International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations in and beyond the region with development of institutional capacities of the public bodies for implementation of the corruption-prevention mechanisms, with the focus on the most corruption-prone sectors.
The SEE-TAC Programme will follow an innovative framework to support beneficiaries in preventing corruption. More specifically, to achieve an effective implementation of UNCAC in SEE, the SEE-TAC programme will first build capacities of non-state actors alongside their governments on the Convention and, then, will support its implementation at grassroot, national and regional levels, as well as bring the voices from the region to the international UNCAC fora.
Furthermore, the innovative regional approach is reflected in reaching an agreement on the International Treaty on Exchange of Data for the Verification of Asset Declarations, during the preceding programme, also funded by ADA, and strongly supported by the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs.
In relation to this Treaty, Biljana Ivanovska, President of the SCPC North Macedonia said: “We show our deepest support to the new SEE-TAC Programme, and we are especially looking forward to signing of the International Treaty on Exchange of Data for Verification of Asset Declarations. In addition, underlining SCPS’s commitment to sign the Treaty, Ms. Ivanovska encouraged other jurisdictions in the SEE, in addition to Montenegro and Serbia, to accede to the Treaty and to join North Macedonia in a united regional cooperation in achieving concrete results in the anti-corruption efforts.
Vladan Joksimovic, Head of the RAI Secretariat informed the participants from across the region that the signing of the International Treaty could take place in the second half of March in Belgrade, should the epidemiological circumstances permit for organisation of this important regional event.
The joint approach embodied in the SEE-TAC Programme will also be exercised through joint advocacy and awareness-raising initiatives spearheaded by CSOs in cooperation with the public and the private sector and numerous capacity-building occasions on UNCAC, its review mechanism, corruption-prevention mechanisms and other anti-corruption topics.
_____________________________________________________________
* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

Ms. Mirella Dummar-Frahi, Chief, Civil Society Unit, UNODC

Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, Head of RAI Secretariat

Ms. Ardita Seknaj, Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce, Albania

Ms. Slagjana Taseva, Chair, Transparency International, North Macedonia

Ms. Biljana Ivanovska, President of the State Commission for the Prevention of Corruption, North Macedonia

Ms. Milica Popovic, Head of Section for Integrity Plans, Lobbying and Corruption Proofing Regulations – Agency for Prevention of Corruption, Montenegro

Mr. Vladica Babic, Assistant Director of the Agency for the Prevention and Coordination of the Fight against Corruption, BiH

Ms. Aneta Arnaudovska, Senior Anti-Corruption Advisor and Ms. Dejana Grbic-Velagic, Chief Programme and Communications Officer, RAI Secretariat

Webinar on Effective asset recovery: legal standards, challenges and good practices
2021-02-09 10:00 - 14:00
The webinar was organised within the Regional Project “Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures” implemented by the AIRE Centre and the RAI Secretariat, funded by the Government of the United Kingdom. Judges, prosecutors, and asset recovery practitioners from Asset Recovery Offices and Asset Management Agencies from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo*, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania and Serbia took part in the webinar.
The webinar was designed to further build expertise amongst prosecutors, judges and asset recovery practitioners and to facilitate the exchange of good practices. Distinguished speakers from the Western Balkans region and the UK presented and discussed with the participants the international and European legal standards and the European Court of Human Rights case-law in the field of asset recovery. Legal challenges to jurisprudence were also discussed and illustrated with case studies from the region.
In the opening remarks, Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, Head of RAI Secretariat, reflected on the excellent cooperation with the AIRE Centre, and the joint 2-year Regional Project on asset recovery. The Project was designed on the basis of comprehensive review and analysis of search, seizure and confiscation of illegally obtained assets conducted by the AIRE Centre and RAI Secretariat.
Ms. Biljana Braithwaite, Director of the Western Balkans Programme at the AIRE Centre opened the webinar recalling the importance of regional cooperation in the matters of asset recovery, as corruption and organized crime affect every society. She added that the recent data of EUROPOL shows that illicit proceeds of crime in Europe alone amount close to 1 billion euros. Only 1% or 2% of these end up being seized on an annual basis. She emphasizes asset recovery as a crucial weapon to all jurisdictions that struggle with seizing a meaningful amount of assets.
Project aimed to improve asset seizure measures in SEE with opportunity to judges and prosecutors to strengthen their knowledge in the area of international practices and practices and to trade their knowledge and build regional networks. The webinar focused on regional and European legal standards and good practices.
His Honour Judge Michael Hopmeier, HHJ at Southwark Crown Court, London, UK, gave a presentation on seizing and confiscating the assets of criminals explaining why, when and how it is done. The presentation was structured to include criminal confiscations, civil asset recovery and unexplained wealth orders, the mechanism that is relatively new in the UK, although UK asset recovery legislation is much older than the EU legislation. HHJ Hopmeier underlined the importance of cooperation in this area of law since every county is struggling with recovering assets that have been stolen a corrupted money.
He mentioned that many publications that set out the effects of a pandemic on crime and accented that criminals are using the pandemic to exploit the weaknesses in governments and added that new forms of fraud such as fake vaccines and so-called romantic crimes have emerged. He compared the American and Chinese punitive systems with European. Unlike America and China, the UK has significantly lower penalties for fraud offenses, thus fraudsters are more concerned in relation to the confiscation of property. Effective and successful asset recovery has the potential to protect the legitimate economy from corruption, to generate the assets that can be used for the public good, and to assist in upholding the rule of law.
Judge Mirjana Lazarova Trajkovska spoke about Asset Recovery Measures and Human Rights Standards from ECtHR Case-law Perspective. Case-law European law on human rights definition on confiscation as the final deprivation of property by order of the court and this definition indicates that this is a flexible concept. Confiscation is recognized as a powerful weapon in the fight against serious crime and corruption. She also mentioned some of the national instruments of asset recovery and relevant international instruments, and conventions, including the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (2000) and the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) 2005.
Dr. Eldan Mujanovic, a professor at the University of Sarajevo, Faculty for Criminalistics, Criminology and Security Studies and Criminal Policy Research Center explained how in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the institute of extended confiscation of property is mentioned for the first time in 2010. The reasons for this are the simplification of procedures given the numerous difficulties in determining the link between the particular act committed and the proceeds of the act.
Some of the reasons for standardizing the extended confiscation of property stated by Professor Mujanovic are the reduction of evidence in terms of concretization of the crime, focusing on property instead of the crime, the assumption that the disputed property originates from previous criminal activity for which no fasting.
Judge Radmila Dragicevic – Dicic of the Supreme Cassation Court of the Republic of Serbia spoke about the Criminal Code, in relation to the special measures of confiscation of proceeds of crime and referred to the proceeds of the criminal offenses in a trial. She reflected on the options of the Serbian criminal code, including the option for confiscating the substitute assets related to the proceeds of crime. She concluded on a high note, reminding all participants that all available instruments should be used to perform effective extended asset recovery.

____________________________________________________________________________
* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

The Regional Multi-Beneficiary Training on Whistleblower Protection
2021-02-09 10:00 - 2021-02-11 16:00
The EU Whistleblowing Directive[1] was passed in December 2019 to provide and promote a safe and secure way for persons to speak up about wrongdoings in their work environment. It also provides a high level of protection to whistleblowers against retaliation, and requires national authorities to adequately inform citizens and train public officials on how to deal with whistleblowing.
Following the Gap Analysis of Whistleblower Protection Laws in SEE jurisdictions, which assesses the level of compliance of these laws with the EU Whistleblowing Directive, the RAI Secretariat delivered a two-day Annual Regional Multi-Beneficiary Training on Whistleblower Protection on February 9 and 11, 2021.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this training was delivered on-line, through two webinars: 1. ‘Building Effective Whistleblower Protections for the Benefit of Citizens in line with the EU Whistleblowing Directive’ and 2. ‘Experiences of Public Institutions and Civil Society in Handling Whistleblower Reports: How to Enhance Mutual Cooperation and Coordination?’ taking place one day apart to provide participants (e.g. professionals from anti-corruption agencies and other oversight bodies) to attend both webinars with time for retrospection.
The training took place in a mixed environment of more than 50 participants representing ministries of justice, anti-corruption agencies or other whistleblowing enforcement bodies, representatives of EU delegations, and 22 representatives of 15 CSOs involved in whistleblowing support and advocacy from 10 SEE jurisdictions, including Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Kosovo*, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, and Serbia.
The comprehensive agenda of the training covered, among other topics, the purpose and overview of key requirements of the EU Whistleblowing Directive; the practices of the European Court of Human Rights on key concepts of the EU Whistleblowing Directive; free speech in the workplace; best approaches in protecting whistleblowers in practice; how good whistleblowing programs lead to successful protection of whistleblowers; the opportunities for collaboration between CSOs and public institutions in whistleblowing protection; the lifecycle of a whistleblower case, from disclosure and support to investigation and protection/corrective actions and other issues as a result of reflections and discussions on experiences of public institutions and civil society.
The training was delivered by international and regional experts on whistleblowing, Mr. Tom Devine, Mr. Mark Worth, Mr. Stephan Kohn, Mr. Mevludin Dzindo, Mr. Boris Vukasinovic, and Ms. Vanja Calovic Markovic, the RAI Secretariat project manager – anti-corruption expert, Ms. Elmerina Ahmetaj Hrelja, and senior anti-corruption advisor Ms. Aneta Arnaudovska, combined with group discussions and recommendations.
The Head of the RAI Secretariat, Mr. Vladan Joksimovic, who provided the opening remarks, stressed the assistance of the RAI Secretariat in the improvements to whistleblowing legislative framework in SEE in line with the EU Whistleblowing Directive. „Today’s training will among other things be an opportunity to hear about key findings and recommendations of the RAI assessment of the compliance of whistleblower protection laws in SEE with the EU Whistleblowing Directive (Gap Analysis), and more importantly to discuss and exchange best practices in whistleblower protection in the region and broadly (EU, USA) “.
Ms. Kay Binder, Policy Officer from the European Commission, Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negations, in her remarks, thanked RAI Secretariat for its continuing efforts to enhance whistleblower protection systems in SEE pointed out that good and functional laws and institutional arrangements, coupled with leadership commitment and public education are key to building effective whistleblower protection systems. Ms. Binder underlined the commitment of EU to support the building of such systems in line with the EU Whistleblowing Directive.
Ms. Elmerina Ahmetaj Hrelja, Project Manager and Anti-corruption Expert, who moderated the event, presented on the purpose, key requirements of the EU Whistleblowing Directive, and the importance of the transposition of the EU Whistleblowing Directive in SEE laws.
Ms. Aneta Arnaudovska, Senior Anticorruption Adviser of RAI Secretariat, presented the practice of the European Court of Human Rights on key concepts of the EU Whistleblowing Directive with a focus on reasonable belief and reversed burden of proof.
Mr. Mark Worth, Whistleblowing Expert of RAI Secretariat, who spoke about RAI Gap Analysis in SEE laws, conveyed a clear message to the participants to be open when it comes to the implementation of laws. „We have laws, we have staff, we have international experts, let’s minimize the number of factors which are frequently slowing down a reform of good governance and creation of fair society”.
Mr. Stephan Kohn from Nation Whistleblower Center, who spoke about the key sources for detecting fraud and corruption, said that „Without a strong whistleblower program corruption cannot be effectively detected or prosecuted.”
Mr. Mevludin Džindo, Assistant Director of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption and Coordination of the Fight against Corruption in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Mr. Boris Vukasinovic, Agency for the Prevention of Corruption in Montenegro, who spoke about the lifecycle of a whistleblower case handled by public institutions, addressed practical experiences in disclosure and support to investigation and protection of a whistleblower.
On a lifecycle of a whistleblower case handled by a CSO, remarks were provided by Ms. Vanja Calovic Markovic from MANS in Montenegro, who spoke about alternative reporting channels made available to a whistleblower by NGOs, and stressed the importance of the confidentiality of the identity of a whistleblower and of collecting and providing evidence investigative/prosecuting bodies.
These presentations were accompanied by tour-de-table discussions of representatives of public institutions and civil society organizations on their experiences in improving whistleblower protection, the challenges they encountered and opportunities for improvements, and in strengthening channels of communication among representatives from governmental and non-governmental sectors in handling whistleblowing reports.
Concluding remarks included a call to turn the laws into a reality and use them to make a difference in the fight against corruption, for which the following is required: the commitment of the organizational leadership, strengthened capacity to implement the law through training, public education, and transparency in how the law is implemented.
The training was conducted under the framework of the regional project ‘Breaking the Silence: Enhancing the whistleblowing policies and culture in Western Balkans and Moldova’, which is funded by the European Union and implemented by the RAI Secretariat.
For further information about the training content and the participants, please follow this link.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
[1] Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2019 on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2019/1937/oj
* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSC 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration on Independence

Final Conference of the Regional Project “Strengthening anti-corruption in the South East Europe through improving asset seizure measures”
2021-03-09
Following two years of implementing the Regional Project “Strengthening anti-corruption in Southeast Europe through improving asset seizure measures”, funded by the Government of the United Kingdom, and supported by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the implementing partners AIRE Centre and the RAI Secretariat organized the Concluding Conference of the Project.
The conference took place on 9 March 2021, with more than 150 participants from the region joining this hybrid event. Participants have participated joined the event from six regional hubs in Belgrade, Podgorica, Pristina, Sarajevo, Skopje and Tirana, as well as from Bulgaria, Croatia, Moldova and Romania via the online conference platform.
The conference featured a presentation of an international perspective on asset recovery, with contributions by representatives of key European institutions and bodies, as well as a discussion on the future of asset recovery cooperation in Southeast Europe. The project’s final report was also presented on this occasion and guidelines for building the AIRE Centre and RAI’s work on asset recovery in the future. Speakers at the conference included Tim Eicke, the judge in respect of the UK on the European Court of Human Rights, Hanne Juncher, the Executive Secretary of the Group of States against Corruption, and Burkhard Muhl, Head of the European Financial and Economic Crime Centre at EUROPOL.
Event Agenda
Final Project Report (available in English, Albanian, BCMS, Macedonian)

Panel Discussion: An International Perspective on Asset Recovery

Guided Discussion for Regional Participants

Panel Discussion: The Future of Asset Recovery in Southeast Europe

Presentation of Regional Conclusions

Opening Session

Mr. Vladan Joksimovic

Ms. Biljana Braitwaithe

Ms. Desislava Gotskova
