Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The adoption of the Islamabad Declaration on Corruption and Human Rights was the result of the 7th international seminar of the Independent Permanent Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC NHRC).

The Declaration calls on all countries to enact strong anti-corruption legislation and step up efforts to combat injustice and other negative consequences of corruption.

The seminar, held on 6-7 January 2022 in the capital of Pakistan, was attended by more than 200 representatives of the UN, the Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the OIC NHRC, the OIC member and observer states, as well as Pakistani government bodies, academia, and civil society institutions.

As it was noted in the video message to the participants of the forum of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, about 1 trillion dollars in bribes are paid annually around the world.

“Of course, the problem and its consequences are enormous, as corruption leads to economic inefficiency and distortion,” she said, stressing that the cost of bribes inflates prices and lowers the quality of services and goods, which seriously harms development.

The workshop highlighted that the return of confiscated assets and illicit financial flows can contribute to effective resource mobilization, poverty eradication, sustainable development and the realization of all human rights, especially for developing countries.

The Islamabad Declaration calls on all OIC states to strengthen the capacity of the judiciary, prosecutors and law enforcement agencies to combat corruption. The document also draws attention to the importance of establishing independent anti-corruption bodies with appropriate powers to investigate crimes of corruption, including transnational crimes.

The document also commends the importance of national human rights institutions in raising awareness of the human rights impact of corruption and in promoting education and training on this issue through their complaints procedures, investigations and analysis.

During the preparation of the Islamabad Declaration, representatives of Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Palestine and other countries made suggestions and comments.

In particular, Mirzatilla Tillaboev, First Deputy Director of the National Center of the Republic of Uzbekistan for Human Rights, made proposals to include in the Declaration provisions on the need to improve legal mechanisms in the fight against corruption within the OIC, active cooperation with national human rights institutions and civil society institutions, and also encouraging awareness-raising campaigns in this area.