ACRC and Korean Association for Corruption Studies Hosted “Anti-Corruption and Integrity” Academic Conference

- The conference diagnosed policies and had an in-depth discussion
for future development tasks to implement anti-corruption and integrity policies
in a sustainable manner -

(27th Aug. 2021, ACRC)

The Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission (Chairperson: Jeon Hyun-Heui, ACRC) and the Korean Association for Corruption Studies (President: Cho Jaehyun, KACS) hosted an online academic conference on 27th August under the theme: “Policy Diagnosis and Future Challenges to Achieve Sustainable Anti-Corruption and Integrity Policies.”

This conference was held to diagnose anti-corruption policy achievement, such as establishment of the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest of Public Officials, and set the direction of anti-corruption and integrity policies to become one of the top 10s in CPI.

The academic conference jointly hosted by the ACRC and the KACS was divided into three sessions for the in-depth discussion on three topics, namely legislation, policy and implementation system.

In the first session entitled “Seeking Ways to Improve Anti-Corruption-related Laws and Regulations and Ways to Advance Anti-Corruption Policy Implementation,” professor Lee Seung-taek of Sangmyung University presented “Constitutional Review about the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest of Public Officials.” Also, he proposed integration of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, which is public officials’ major standards of conduct, and the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest of Public Officials.

The topic for the second session was “Ways to Seek Out Law Strategy for Preventing Social Corruption (Environment).” Professor Jung Shin-kyo of Mokpo National Maritime University presented “Ways to Make the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest of Public Officials Effective.” He also suggested complete prevention of pursuing personal interest through confidential information obtained on duty and presented the direction to revise public interest whistleblower protection system for the effective protection of reporters, including better compensation for them.

Professor Kim Ae-jin of Gyeongsang National University presented “Rent Seeking and Corruption.” She analyzed the correlation between level of integrity and local grant tax or government subsidies, suggesting that it is necessary to revise the Act on the Prevention of Corruption and the Establishment and Management of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and facilitate internal auditing function.

Last but not least, the topic of the third session was “the Role of ACRC for Establishing Anti-Corruption Policy and Ways to Build National Integrity System.” Chief researcher Lee Seon-Jung of the Seoul Institute for Transparency at the University of Seoul presented “Challenges for Building Sustainable National Integrity System.” It was followed by policy discussion that can bring about social change by analyzing the correlation between Social Integration Index and Corruption Perception Index.

Chairperson Jeon Hyun-Heui of the ACRC said, “the Korean Association for Corruption Studies, which studies anti-corruption and integrity in an academic area, and the Anti-Corruption & Civil Rights Commission, which is a spearheading organization in anti-corruption and integrity, will actively work together to bring anti-corruption and integrity in Korea to the next level.”

President Cho Jaehyun of the Korean Association for Corruption Studies said, “I expect that this academic conference can serve as a platform to have an in-depth and constructive discussion with those who are devoted to building clean and fair society.”