A report on the activities of the anti-corruption monitoring body of the Council of Europe - the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) in 2019 was presented in Strasbourg on June 3.
According to AZERTAC, Azerbaijan has implemented the recommendations of the organization by 61.9%.
"According to this indicator, our country ranks 7th among 50 member states of the Council of Europe, and 1st among the CIS countries," the agency said.
Fakt Yoxla examined whether the agency's claim was true.
Before moving on to the GRECO rankings, it is necessary to clarify the number of member states of the Council of Europe.
The agency made a mistake in the number of member countries. Thus, the Council of Europe has 47 member states, not 50. The number of signatories is 50. In addition to the members of the Council of Europe, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and the United States have joined GRECO, which was established in 1999.
The purpose of the organization is to monitor whether member countries are operating in accordance with the anti-corruption standards of the Council of Europe and to increase the anti-corruption capacity of these countries.
So far, a Fifth Round Evaluation Report has been prepared on some of the provisions of the GRECO’s Twenty Guiding Principles and Criminal Law Convention.
The first round covered the years 2000-2002, the second round 2003-2006, and the third round 2007-2012. The fourth round has been continuing since 2012, and the fifth round since 2017.
GRECO's 20th report was published on March 25. The report, which covers the progress and setbacks in the field of corruption in 2019, is mainly related to the implementation of the recommendations of the 4th and 5th evaluation rounds.
The report notes that 29 countries have been able to implement many of GRECO's recommendations in a timely manner due to prudent budget management, effective savings, and additional funding. Among these countries are not Azerbaijan, but neighboring countries - Georgia, Armenia, and Russia.
The report mainly covers the prevention of corruption in the activities of MPs, judges, and prosecutors. The level of implementation of the recommendations in each area was divided into three categories: implemented, partially implemented, and not implemented, and in the end, the final evaluations were made.
According to the report, which covers 42 countries, members of parliament in Azerbaijan implemented 50% of the recommendations, partially implemented 25%, and did not implement 25%.
Judges implemented 57.1% of the recommendations, partially implemented 28.6%, and did not implement 14.3%. Prosecutors implemented 70% of the recommendations, partially implemented 20%, and did not implement 10%. The report for 2019 emphasizes that Azerbaijan implemented 61.9% of the recommendations, partially implemented 23.8%, and did not implement 14.3%.
According to the final evaluations, Azerbaijan ranks 9th. Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom are ahead of Azerbaijan.
From the CIS, the list includes only three countries - Azerbaijan, Moldova, and Armenia. Azerbaijan has the best performance among these countries.
At present, there are 9 CIS member states, 4 of which are parties to the agreement.
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Countries in the top 10 in the Group of States against Corruption |
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| Countries | MPs (%) | Judges (%) | Prosecutors (%) | Total (%) | |
| 1. | Finland | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 2. | Norway | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| 3. | United Kingdom | 100 | 50 | 100 | 87,5 |
| 4. | Sweden | 60 | 100 | 100 | 75 |
| 5. | Estonia | 42.9 | 80 | 100 | 73,7 |
| 6. | Latvia | 50 | 85.7 | 66.7 | 68,8 |
| 7. | Slovenia | 0 | 75 | 89 | 66,7 |
| 8. | Bulgaria | 50 | 55.6 | 83.3 | 63,2 |
| 9. | Azerbaijan | 50 | 57.1 | 70 | 61,9 |
| 10. | Iceland | 75 | 0 | 75 | 60 |
In the 2018 report, it was stated that 50% of the recommendations were not implemented and 50% were partially implemented in the activities of the members of the Milli Majlis. It was noted that 57.1% of the recommendations were implemented in the activities of judges, 28.6% were partially implemented, 14.3% were not implemented. Also, 60% of the recommendations were implemented and 40% were not implemented in the activities of prosecutors. No final evaluation was made on that report. A comparison with the 2019 report shows that there has been no change in the performance of judges. Progress has been made in two other areas.
Thus, although the percentage of Azerbaijan's compliance with GRECO's recommendations is correct, the agency made a mistake in the ranking. Azerbaijan ranks 9th, not 7th, as stated in the claim. It should also be noted that the rating was prepared for 42 of the 50 member countries, which are parties to the agreement. In addition, although Azerbaijan ranks first among the CIS countries in the list, the fact that only 3 countries from the CIS are in the ranking reduces the accuracy of the claim.
Fakt Yoxla concludes that AZERTAC’s claim is Half True.
