By Barbara Whittle

Steven Powell, Peter Leon, Metumo Shilongo, Marelise van der Westhuizen and André Vos participated in a review panel facilitated by the Law Society of South Africa for the evaluation of South Africa by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Working Group on Bribery under the Anti-Bribery Convention in Sandton last month.

The OECD examiners sought the views of a number of stakeholders on the South African approach to enforcing the offence of foreign bribery in international business transactions. The panel of legal practitioners had experience in advising companies on anti-corruption mechanisms to be put in place, or acting as defence counsels in criminal proceedings against companies accused of economic crime.

Johannesburg attorney Michael Judin (right) participated in an earlier panel.

The OECD Anti-Bribery Convention establishes legally binding standards to criminalise bribery of foreign public officials in international business transactions and provides for a host of related measures that make this effective. It is the first and only international anti-corruption instrument focused on the ‘supply side’ of the bribery transaction. The 34 OECD member countries and six non-member countries – Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Colombia, Russia and South Africa – have adopted this convention.

Compiled by Barbara Whittle, communications manager, Law Society of South Africa, barbara@lssa.org.za

This article was first published in De Rebus in 2013 (July) DR 15.