Defending The Defenders: Our Call, Our Last Frontier

In a world where corruption tears apart the fabric of society, countless individuals and groups from all sectors and backgrounds step forward to defend integrity and confront the forces of corruption, which cause greater damage to women and vulnerable groups. The corrupt, on their side, are becoming alarmingly used to cross any red line to ensure their impunity. In 2022 alone, an environmental activist was killed every second day, and the number of journalists and media workers killed represented a staggering rise of 50% from 2021.

Through this agenda track we seek to raise our collective voice to honour the countless champions of integrity and highlight their determination in the face of danger. With a strong gender and vulnerable groups focus, we also seek to strengthen our networks and strategies to further support and protect all the leaders of integrity that fight to defend our social moral compass.

• Tackling SLAPPs: A Critical Frontier in The Global Fight against Corruption (Ws 6.9)

  Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) have proliferated globally, often deployed by those trying to shut down corruption investigations. These abusive legal actions can stop stories in their tracks, punish journalists/activists and delay or prevent wrongdoing from coming to light. Join us to discuss the progress of regional anti-SLAPP efforts and explore global solutions.

  Coordinated by Foreign Policy Centre and the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition

  Featuring The Daphne Foundation, Foreign Policy Centre and the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition, Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), CASE Steering Committee and Public Eye

• Biden or Trump? How Will the 2024 U.S. Election Impact The Global Fight against Corruption (Ws 5.1)

  The outcome of the 2024 election in the U.S. will have a profound impact on global anti-corruption efforts. What could we expect from a second Biden term? Alternatively, given President Trump’s views on multi-lateral institutions and cooperation and his past support for illiberal regimes, how should the global anti-corruption community respond should he be elected?

  Coordinated by American University

  Featuring Brookings Institution, Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance - University of Cape Town, Harvard Law School and School of Foreign Service - Georgetown University

• Shielding Defenders: Reducing Violence by Linking Anti-Corruption and Environmental Networks (Ws 3.2)

  This session will explore emerging opportunities to reduce violence against environmental defenders and whistleblowers by strengthening collaboration between anti-corruption and environmental networks. Participants will discuss how existing networks, including Global Majority-led initiatives, support defenders and how multi-stakeholder strategies could further help to reduce impunity.

  Coordinated by ALLIED

  Featuring ALLIED, Tsikini, Climate Whistleblowers, World Resources Institute and Former representative of Escazu Agreement

• Common Vision for International Standards on Anti-Corruption and Police Oversight (Ws 4.4)

  There are scarcely any internationally binding standards and guidelines containing a set of standards for anti-corruption or police-oversight authorities. Each country is developing its own system. When democracy and the rule of law are constantly challenged, a common set of standards on anti-corruption is long overdue. EPAC/EACN is actively encouraging to step up!

  Coordinated by European Partners against Corruption (EPAC), European contact-point Network against Corruption (EACN) and Secretariat and Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania (STT)

  Featuring European Partners against Corruption (EPAC), European contact-point Network against Corruption (EACN), Secretary, Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania (STT), Anti-Corruption Network for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, DG HOME - European Commission, Italian National Anti-Corruption Authority (ANAC) and the Network of European Integrity and Whistleblowing Authorities (NEIWA)

• From Silence to Safety: Advancing Whistleblower Laws Part I (Ws 3.8)

• How to catch an Enabler: Routes to Accountability for Corruption’s Professional Helpers (Ws 7.9)

  Traditionally, the professionals who help execute corruption schemes face few consequences. But is this starting to change? Panellists will discuss how enablers, including reputational, professional and law enforcement channels, can face accountability. Considering new precedents and opportunities, what specific steps can anti-corruption actors take so that serious offenders face repercussions?

  Coordinated by Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP)

  Featuring Transparency International, Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus (ICPAC), Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and European Commission (EC)

• From Silence to Safety: Advancing Whistleblower Laws Part II (Ws 4.5)

• Whose Interests Do We Serve? Foreign Agent Laws and their Impact on Anti-Corruption Efforts (Ws 8.8)

  Foreign Agents (FA) laws are proliferating across the globe, including in the EU. We will explore their impact on civil society and the fight against corruption, bringing global, regional and national perspectives together. The panel will focus on successful strategies and lessons learned in pushing back and identify solutions to reconcile transparency and its potential abuse against civil society.

  Coordinated by Transparency International Secretariat (TI-S)

  Featuring Transparency International Secretariat (TI-S), CIVICUS, International Center for Not-for-profit Law (ICNL), Transparency International Georgia (TI – Georgia), Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD)

• Watching The Watchtower: Harnessing The Power of Collective Action (Ws 9.1)

  Independent media plays a vital role in anti-corruption. At the same time, corruption increasingly takes place across jurisdictions, exploiting loopholes and gaps in international cooperation. Investigative journalists and media professionals in the Pacific Island Countries have established a collaborative network to focus on corruption investigations and reporting in 2018, and a similar initiative is attempted in Southeast Asia this year. The networks serve as platforms for collaboration among the journalists, including on uncovering regional corruption links and patterns.

  Coordinated by Philippines Center for Investigative Journalism

  Featuring Philippines Center for Investigative Journalism, Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Officer United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and Pacific Islands News Association

• NGOs in Exile: How Not to Become a Grant-Eater? (Ws 3.1)

  According to Freedom House, global freedom has been decreasing for the last 17 years. More and more CSOs must leave their countries, but today, thanks to technology, they have more opportunities to continue activities abroad. But how can these activities be impactful? How can an NGO provide a change for its compatriots and not become a grant-eater? The discussion is to discover.

  Coordinated by Transparency International Russia (TI – Russia)

  Featuring Transparency International Russia (TI – Russia), The Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety and Teplitsa of Social Technologies

• Shining a Light: Global Accountability and Anticorruption Movements Struggle to Protect Defenders (Ws 10.1)

  Join us for an insightful and multiregional workshop delving into the critical roles of civil society in combatting corruption and defending the defenders of democracy and human rights and anti-corruption activists. In an era where fundamental democratic values are increasingly under siege, civil society must uphold accountability and standards in its efforts.

  Coordinated by ICD Uruguay, Rendir Cuentas and OGP 2022-2024

  Featuring ICD Uruguay, Rendir Cuentas, National NGO Coalition of Lituania, Fundacion Ciudadania y Desarrollo (FCD) Transparency International Ecuador (TI – Ecuador), ProtectDefenders and Pacific Islands Association of NGO (PIANGO)

• Safe Reporting and Sex-for-Grades: How do We Prevent Re-Victimizing The Victims? (Ws 10.7)

  The workshop will present the experiences of victims of sex-for-grades in the education sector, the defenders who amplify their voices, the technology-enabled tools used to enable safe reporting and the body of research on the scourge. It will discuss strategies to expand research, innovate the reporting tools and improve the integration of the issue into international development policy.

  Coordinated by Transparency International Secretariat (TI-S)

  Featuring International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), This is My Backyard (TIMBY) and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)

• Civil Society and Government Acting in Partnership for Transparency and Anti-Corruption (Ws 1.1)

  If corruption thrives in the shadows, sunlight can be the best weapon against it. In this workshop, representatives from the U.S.A, Kenya, and Spain governments, together with the Accountability Lab and the Open Government Partnership (OGP), will consider the role that OGP and its civil society-oriented processes can play in helping governments become more open, transparent, and accountable.

  Coordinated by U.S. Department. Of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, & Labor

  Featuring Open Government Partnership (OGP), Government of Spain, Government of Kenya and Accountability Lab

• Get up, Stand up for Integrity! Corruption Beats, Activism & Artistic Flows from Ukraine, Nigeria, Malawi, Vilnius and in your heart (Ws 2.1)

  Coordinated by Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI)

• Corruption, Debt, and Underdevelopment: The Urgent Need for Democratic Oversight (Ws 7.1)

  Corruption is simultaneously a cause and a consequence of undemocratically contracted debt. Co-organized by Transparency International (TI), National Democratic Institute (NDI), Chandler Foundation and Open Government Partnership (OGP), the session will discuss the impact of opaque debt on integrity norms and identify specific ways to improve debt transparency and mitigate the risk of corruption. It will explore the new Debt Transparency Checklist’s civil society and parliamentary uses.

  Coordinated by Transparency International Secretariat |(TI-S)

  Featuring National Democratic Institute (NDI), International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) Council, World Bank, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (DANIDA) and Transparency International Secretariat |(TI-S)

• Corruption Measurement: How to Hit a Moving Target?

  In recent years the discourse on corruption measurement moved from the question ‘whether corruption can be measured’ to ‘whether countries will consistently measure corruption’. Measuring corruption is a critical building block that supports countries to assess effectiveness of anti-corruption reforms. Without methodologies and tools in place it is difficult to collect data and evidence that will inform policy decisions to adapt or re-think anti-corruption measures.

  This workshop will look into new solutions to measure corruption. Building on the current work, the workshop will present new approaches that will support countries in assessing their progress in combatting corruption. Novel approaches and solution tools to measure corruption at the global and national levels will be presented by lead experts in the area.

  Coordinated by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

  Featuring Ministry of Foreign Affairs Norway, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Working Group on Bribery, Open Contracting Partnership, Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania (STT) and Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) Brazil