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	Women arrested at protest against Sudan whipping by AFP / BBC Bangladesh / Sudan   Feb 2011   Four arrested after Bangladesh girl "lashed to death". (BBC News)   Four people including a Muslim cleric have been arrested in Bangladesh in connection with the death of 14-year-old girl who was publiclly lashed to death.   The teenager was "accused" of having an affair with a married man, police say, and the punishment was given under Islamic Sharia law.   Hena Begum"s family members said a village court consisting of elders and clerics passed the sentence. She was alleged to have had the affair with her cousin and received 80 lashes.   The family members of the married man also allegedly beat the girl up a day before the village court passed the sentence in the district of Shariatpur.   Hena Begum Hena Begum died after being taken to hospital."Her family members said she was admitted to a hospital after the incident and she died six days later.   The village elders also asked the girl"s father to pay a fine of about 50,000 Taka (£430; $700)," district superintendent of police, AKM Shahidur Rahman, told the BBC.   "We are looking for another 14 people including a teacher from a local madrassa in connection with this case," Mr Rahman said.   Human Rights activists say dozens of fatwas - or religious rulings - are issued under Sharia law each year by village clergy in Bangladesh.   "What sort of justice is this? My daughter has been beaten to death in the name of justice. If it had been a proper court then my daughter would not have died," Dorbesh Khan, the father of Hena Begum, told the BBC. He said those responsible for the death should be punished.   A group of people held a rally on Wednesday in the town of Shariatpur in protest against those who gave the fatwa and demanded action against them.   Dec 15, 2010 (AFP)   Sudanese authorities have arrested about 30 women who tried to hold a protest in Khartoum against the brutal police whipping of a young woman seen in a video posted on YouTube.   An AFP journalist said the arrests took place in downtown Khartoum near the justice ministry where the demonstrators wanted to deliver a protest letter.   The video shows men in powder-blue uniforms as worn by Sudanese police whipping a woman all over her body as she kneels, crying and moaning.   The judiciary on Monday announced it was probing the incident. "An investigation was launched into the lashing of a young woman as seen on a website, and the implementation of sanctions that go against what is outlined in the criminal code," it said. Sections of Sudan"s 1991 Criminal Code, imposed two years after President Omar al-Bashir came to power in a military-backed coup, mandate lashings for "indecent" behaviour or adultery.   The Sudan Women"s Association had requested over the weekend that the authorities investigate the case, calling it an "insult" to the Sudanese people and a "humiliation" for its women.   Last year, journalist-turned-activist Lubna Hussein went to court to challenge a ruling that women wearing trousers were being "indecent," a charge under which thousands of people were flogged.   Hussein herself was sentenced to a fine of 200 Sudanese pounds (66 dollars) for wearing pants, but she was not whipped. Visit the related web page
	Corruption has increased over the last three years, say six out of 10 people around the world by UN News / Transparency International   Dec 9, 2010   UN chief urges business leaders to denounce and fight corruption.   UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged business leaders across the world to denounce corruption and institute measures to combat the vice, in line with the United Nations convention against graft, saying corruption distorted markets and hindered economic growth.   “Corruption acts as a hidden overhead charge that drives up prices and erodes quality without any benefit to producers or consumers. Preventing corruption makes good business sense,” Mr. Ban said in a message to mark International Anti-Corruption Day.   “Increasingly, investors are factoring not only environmental, social and governance considerations into their decision-making, but sound ethical performance as well,” he added.   Mr. Ban noted that the UN Convention against Corruption has helped the public sector to make progress in detecting and preventing graft. State parties to the treaty, which now number 148, last year established a peer review mechanism to identify gaps in national anti-corruption laws and practices, a move he termed “a major breakthrough” that can help governments halt bribe-taking and the embezzlement of public funds.   The UN is itself fighting corruption in its work, he said, by ensuring individual accountability, collaborating with law enforcement agencies, and investigating all possible instances of corruption.   The UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) yesterday brought together representatives from various organizations around the world for a two-day conference aimed at strengthening the role of internal investigations in combating corruption.   “On this International Anti-Corruption Day, let us all do our part to foster ethical practices, safeguard trust and ensure no diversion of the precious resources needed for our shared work for development and peace,” Mr. Ban said.   In particular, he called on businesses to join the UN Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, which provides participants with tools to fight all forms of corruption, including extortion and bribery.   To mark the Day, the Global Compact, together with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the UN Ethics Office, is hosting a high-level discussion in New York on the role of the private sector in fighting corruption.   Yury Fedotov, UNODC Executive Director, stressed in his message for the Day the need for the private sector to make effective use of the Convention against Corruption.   “The private sector plays a key role in fostering development, but it is lagging behind the public sector in its efforts to stop corruption,” said Mr. Fedotov. “In the past year, a number of countries have stepped up enforcement of anti-corruption laws, and we have seen high-level prosecutions of major companies, but many of these cases have ended in plea bargains.”   He noted that although companies found culpable in graft cases have paid huge fines, the money stayed in the States where the settlements were reached and none of it went back to countries from which it was taken.   “Ordinary people are the losers. We need to address this integrity deficit. I encourage the working group on asset recovery to look into this,” Mr. Fedotov said, referring to the intergovernmental body set up in 2006 by the parties to the corruption treaty and mandated to advise and assist parties on the issue of the return of proceeds of corruption.   During today’s event, to be held at UN Headquarters, the Global Compact and UNODC will launch the Anti-Corruption E-Learning Programme, an educational online platform.   “The programme dramatizes situations in which real people can find themselves, and offers clear lessons on the right course of action,” Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro said at the launch, in remarks delivered on behalf of the Secretary-General.   Ms. Migiro noted that it is one of many initiatives the UN is carrying out with organizations like Transparency International, the International Chamber of Commerce and the World Economic Forum. At the same time, the world body is doing everything possible to promote an ethical organizational culture across its system, she said.   “We are putting in place new measures to ensure individual and managerial accountability, working with law enforcement officials, and investigating all possible instances of corruption that may arise in the course of our activities.   “Working together, we can protect resources from falling into corrupt hands – and instead ensure that they contribute to a better life for the honest but struggling people of our world,” she said.   * People see corruption getting worse but are ready to get involved, says biggest Transparency International global public opinion survey, see link below. Visit the related web page
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