CHAIR’S SUMMARYTwelfth Regional Seminar on Good Governancefor Southeast Asian Countries
Da Nang, Viet Nam
27 – 29 November 2018

GENERAL
1. The Twelfth Regional Seminar on Good Governance for Southeast Asian Countries, co-hosted
by the Supreme People’s Procuracy of Viet Nam (SPP) and the United Nations Asia and Far East
Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders (UNAFEI), was held in Da
Nang, Viet Nam from 27 to 29 November 2018. Mr. Takeshi Seto, Director of UNAFEI, served
as the Chair of the Seminar. Officials and experts from the following jurisdictions attended theseminar: Brunei Darussalam, the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Republic of Indonesia, Japan, theLao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, the Union of Myanmar, the Republic of thePhilippines, the Republic of Singapore, the Kingdom of Thailand and the Socialist Republic ofViet Nam.
OPENING CEREMONY
2. Mr. TAKESHI SETO, Director of UNAFEI and Dr. TRAN CONG PHAN, Deputy Procurator Generaldelivered opening addresses, welcoming the participants, introducing the theme of The Latest
Regional Trends in Corruption and Effective Countermeasures by Criminal Justice Authorities
and emphasizing the importance of reviewing and recognizing advancements in anti-corruption
practices through the sharing of knowledge, skills and strategies from the ASEAN region andbeyond. Director Seto and Dr. Tran Cong Phan both addressed the importance of international
cooperation in combating transnational crime and corruption.
3. MR. SHINICHI ASAZUMA, Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Japan in Viet Nam,
expressed the sincere gratitude of the government of Japan to the SPP and UNAFEI for their
dedicated preparation for the Seminar. He stressed the importance of the rule of law in fighting
corruption, noting that corruption is a significant factor in hindering social and economic
development, as well as strengthening relationships between the participating countries.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
4. DIRECTOR SETO delivered his keynote, addressing the importance of international cooperation. In
the decade following the adoption of UNCAC, many countries have developed their anticorruption strategies and practices by, for example, establishing special anti-corruption agencies
and courts, implementing prevention measures, and employing special investigation measures,such as undercover operations, telecommunications interception, and enhancing witness
protection. However, drastic societal changes over the past ten years, including the rapid- 19 -

expansion of information and communications technologies and cross-border financialtransactions, have led to a new era of transnational corruption. Simply relying on conventional
methods to fight corruption may no longer be sufficient to suppress the increasingly transnationaland complex nature of corruption. In addition to developing new countermeasures, anticorruption practitioners must work more closely than ever to overcome transnational corruption
with the aim of ensuring sustainable social and economic development.
VISITING EXPERTS’ LECTURES
5. DR. CLAIRE ARMELLE LEGER, Anti-Corruption Analyst, Anti-Corruption Division, Directorate
for Financial and Enterprise Affairs, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development,delivered her lecture on the topic of Mutual Legal Assistance in Asia and the Pacific:
Experiences in 31 Jurisdictions. Dr. Leger introduced the OECD Anticorruption Initiative for
Asia-Pacific, including the results of a regional survey on challenges and best practices for
effective Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA).
Common Challenges to Effective MLA in Corruption Cases
The first challenge is the legal basis for cooperation, which can be based on multilateral orbilateral treaties or domestic law. If two countries do not have a treaty, article 46 of UNCAC canserve as a basis. Second, differences in legal and procedural frameworks were reported byseveral countries as posing challenges to obtaining MLA due to misunderstanding of theapplicable legal basis, grounds for requests, legal and procedural requirements, among others.
Third, although many countries use English, language barriers remain, as some countries lacktranslation resources. Fourth, some requests lack sufficient descriptions of the assistancerequested. In that case, the ability to communicate through informal means can help the efficient
processing of requests. Fifth, some countries reported delays, insufficient responses, or receiving
no response at all to requests. While most requests are fulfilled within 6 months to 1 year, delaysin the provision of MLA frustrate efficient international cooperation and law enforcement,
enabling shell companies to disband, offenders to transfer and conceal corruption proceeds, andoffenders and witnesses to relocate. Sixth, resource issues were also reported as barriers toeffective MLA. The greater need for MLA has increased financial and other burdens on anticorruption enforcement agencies, such as processing a greater number of MLA requests, theneed for more staff and training programmes, and greater need for technology and equipment.
Finally, traditional grounds for refusing MLA include dual criminality, evidentiary andinformation issues, among other grounds. According to the survey, the most cited reason forrefusal was the failure of the request to meet evidentiary requirements of the requested state.
Evidentiary issues come into play as a practical matter as well. If necessary documentation is notincluded in the request, it may be impossible to execute, even if the information is not legallyrequired. While dual criminality can be a hurdle, many jurisdictions take the conduct-based
approach, meaning that as long as the conduct constitutes an offence in the requested state, thedual criminality requirement is deemed to be met.
Best Practices for MLA in Corruption Cases
First, networks and relationships lead to trust and effective communication, but they take time todevelop. Countries are encouraged to engage in regular bilateral meetings among law
enforcement officials, as well as networking and exchange of practices. Second, requests must be- 20 -

accompanied by supporting information that provides executing authorities with (i) adequate
grounds to undertake the requested action and (ii) necessary facts and other details. Training on
MLA practices and request writing is also important. Third, consultations between parties areencouraged under Article 48 of UNCAC. Law enforcement officials should consider
consultations at all stages of the process: from pre-request to consultation after the request is
submitted. Consultations should be viewed as complimentary to the request writing process.
Fourth, transmission and prioritization of requests is important, as several governmental bodies
may be involved in processing the request, and clear procedures are essential. Finally, modern
technology permits the efficient tracking of incoming and outgoing MLA requests. While anumber of countries have such case management tools, other jurisdictions primarily rely on inperson contacts; the ideal approach to case management combines these two approaches.
Practical Tools for Facilitating Effective MLA
To facilitate the MLA process, all jurisdictions should consider, where possible in accordancewith law, engaging in direct law enforcement cooperation, spontaneous exchanges of
information, and the utilization of international networks. Direct cooperation between law
enforcement agencies, such as anti-corruption authorities, FIUs, police forces, tax authorities,
and prosecution authorities, is indispensable to investigating transnational corruption. However,the MLA process is formal and bureaucratic. Informal cooperation between law enforcement
agencies can lead to valuable intelligence to further an investigation, such as obtaining legal
advice about the process, company records, general information about persons or companies,
information needed to facilitate witness interviews, and so on. Additionally, many jurisdictions
are recognizing the importance of spontaneous exchanges of information. The primary goal ofsuch exchanges is to serve the interests of the receiving state, but the receiving state is obligatedto maintain confidentiality. Finally, practitioners should make use of international networks tofacilitate assistance, such as holding periodic meetings, involvement in international or regional
networks, and stationing liaison officers abroad. Informal and spontaneous exchanges of
information must only be provided in accordance with a jurisdiction’s legal framework.
6. MR. MOHAMAD ZAMRI BIN ZAINUL ABIDIN, Deputy Commissioner, Malaysia Anti-Corruption
Commission (MACC), delivered his lecture on the topic of The Latest Regional Trends in
Corruption and Effective Countermeasures by Criminal Justice Authorities—Malaysian
Perspectives. While prosecuting offenders for corruption is an important step, this traditional
approach is insufficient to combat corruption. Anti-corruption practitioners must prioritize theconfiscation of assets obtained through corruption and pursue corporate liability. In Malaysia,
these priorities are reflected in the MACC’s four operating divisions: the AMLA Division, theHigh Level Task Force, Forensic and Financial Expertise, and Joint Operations. Mr. Zamri
introduced three cases to further demonstrate the issues faced in Malaysia and the MACC’s anticorruption approaches. In the first case, smuggling was introduced as a common form ofcorruption faced in Malaysia, particularly in reference to avoiding customs duties in Free Trade
Zones in which imported goods are underdeclared and smuggled out of warehouses. To counter
this practice, the MACC stationed undercover officers in the Free Trade Zone to identify andtrack smuggled goods, gathered intelligence on the bribery of customs officials, and conductedsimultaneous arrests of key suspects. Other key factors to disrupting this scheme included
gathering financial information, working with and protecting informants and whistle-blowers,
conducting Intelligence Based Investigation (IBI) and conducting parallel investigations into

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each criminal offence and money laundering. In the second case, a transnational case in which
the corruption took place in Hong Kong, the MACC obtained suspicious transaction reports andother banking information to detect the flow of the bribes, but the criminals changed their modus
operandi by using proxies to transfer bribe money via cash. Thus, the use of informants wasimportant to investigate the case and follow the cash flow. When attempting to trace bribemoney, the MACC looks at the criminal’s family tree to identify which proxies may be inpossession of the illicit funds, and persons of interest typically include the criminal’s spouse,children, mistresses, etc. Furthermore, suspects need to be investigated with consideration of thesource of the bribe money, money laundering, and tax evasion. Finally, Mr. Zamri introduced ahigh-profile corruption case, in which a former Prime Minister of Malaysia received bribe money.
The MACC collaborated with at least seven countries to investigate the case. These countries
established an international task force to facilitate the exchange of information. The MACC also
learned information about the scheme through court cases in other jurisdictions, when important
information became part of the public domain. Based on the information collected using thesemeasures, the former Prime Minister was arrested in July 2018, his residence was searched andassets were seized, including a $250 million superyacht. The Prime Minister was charged in
September 2018, along with his wife, and his lawyer, as well as the former Deputy Prime
Minister. The amount seized in Malaysia was over 286,000,000 ringgit (191 accounts);
Singapore returned SGD15 million; and the superyacht was returned. Based on these high-value
forfeitures, more assets were voluntary returned.
COUNTRY PRESENTATIONS
7. BRUNEI DARUSSALAM: The delegation reported that fuel smuggling is a common problem, andthe bribery of customs officers is frequently one of the means for smuggling the fuel. The fuelsmuggling case illustrated the use of undercover operations, video surveillance, and joint
operations. Other forms of corruption include public procurement corruption, bribery of public
officials and schemes to defraud the state. Brunei Darussalam also places great emphasis on
corruption education and awareness programmes for the government and the private sector, withthe objective of instilling integrity and core values and promoting awareness of fighting
corruption in day-to-day dealings. The ACB has launched education programmes for primarythrough tertiary levels of education and has incorporated Corruption Prevention Education into
the National Curriculum.
8. CAMBODIA: The fight against corruption in public education has been a recent trend, and great
efforts have been taken by the ACU to monitor the administration of high school graduation
exams. Monitoring is performed by 196 ACU staff members (one per testing centre) and nearly
5,000 volunteers (one per exam room). The integrity of judges and public officials remains achallenge in Cambodia, as illustrated by the embezzlement case presented, in which theSecretary General of the Ministry of Post and Telecommunication was found guilty andsentenced to imprisonment and fines in the amount of 200,000 USD, and 500,000 USD was
confiscated from his bank account.
9.

INDONESIA: Stressing the impact of corruption on economic and social development, thedelegation introduced Indonesia’s strategies for corruption prevention and law enforcement,
including enhanced measures to institute e-procurement, protect whistle-blowers, accelerate the- 22 -

resolution of cases, the establishment of the TP4P and TP4D initiatives and the Special Task
Force for Countermeasure Acts and Disposal of Corruption Case (Satgasus P3TPK), etc. These
efforts recovered nearly 475 billion rupiah in 2017. The delegation reported on the misuse of
legitimate business transactions as a latest corruption trend. The e-ID case, in which fraudulent
companies were established for the specific purpose of submitting losing bids in the public
procurement process, resulted in the loss of approximately 2.3 billion rupiah. Other schemes
include set-off debt and the use of money changers to conceal illicit money transfers.
10. JAPAN (UNAFEI): The most prevalent form of corruption in Japan is bid rigging in public
procurement. A case involving four big construction companies was introduced. In 2018, Japan
introduced “cooperative agreements” (a kind of plea agreement) as an investigative measure,which is useful in corruption cases.
11. LAOS: Corruption among public officials remains a challenge in Laos, resulting in significant
financial losses to the state. Forms of corruption include abuse of position, power and duty,
swindling state property, and bribery. Corruption in the financial system was also reported as asignificant problem, through which offenders open and close loan accounts as a form ofcorruption. To address these problems, Laos requires public officials at all levels to submit asset
declarations. Moreover, Laos is making efforts to promote public understanding and awarenessof corruption in its education system from the kindergarten level to high school, increase
capacity and anti-corruption awareness of public officials at all levels, increase research on
corruption, adopt stricter laws and regulations, implement the National Anti-Corruption Strategy
and cooperate with other countries.
12. MALAYSIA: Corruption offences in Malaysia include receiving and giving gratification, false
claims, abuse of power, money laundering and other penal code offences. In addition toprosecution of corruption cases, the MACC places great emphasis on the seizure and forfeitureof the proceeds of corruption with and without prosecution. Due to strict banking rules in
Malaysia, criminals are avoiding financial institutions by storing massive amounts of cash intheir homes. Four cases were introduced, demonstrating the characteristics of the most common
forms of corruption: misuse of public funds, involvement of huge amounts of cash, involvementof lawyers and dummy documents, and the use of proxies. The delegation addressed operational
and preventive countermeasures including effective investigation management techniques,“Corruption-Free Pledges”, Integrity Units etc.
13. MYANMAR: Corruption among public officials remains widespread in Myanmar. A trend indeveloping leads in corruption cases is the investigation of credible news reports of corruption.
The delegation also reported the use of administrative actions and rules to prevent corruption,such as establishing rules on the acceptance of gifts by public officials and their family members.
Moreover, the Myanmar Investment Commission issued the Anti-Corruption Code of Ethics forprivate-sector companies. Three bribery cases were introduced, dealt with by the AntiCorruption Commission, addressing the examination of bank records, witness testimony, anddiscovering corruption leads based on “notorious news”.
14. PHILIPPINES: Corruption is a constant concern in the Philippines, and the delegation reported
numerous high-profile cases involving legislators and former presidents. From 1979 to 2016,- 23 -

53.58% of 33,772 corruption cases involved malversation and graft committed by high-ranking
officials. Corruption in the Philippines generally includes bribery, kickbacks, abuse of function,
influence peddling and illicit enrichment, as well as a number of other forms unique to thePhilippines, such as technical malversation, political dynasty, “ghost” projects, etc. To counter
corruption, the Philippines has developed effective prevention strategies and programmes
developed through broad-based partnerships. Prevention measures include inter-agency
partnerships, strengthening legislation, enhanced transparency, integrity programmes, taking asectoral approach to licensing and permitting, digitization of systems, merit-based incentive
programmes, and the creation of an anti-corruption hotline. Several law enforcement measuresand international cooperation and asset recovery measures were also reported.
15. SINGAPORE: Corruption in Singapore occurs predominately in the private sector, such as inconstruction, wholesale and retail businesses, warehousing, and logistics. In response, Singapore
has undertaken measures to engage the private sector in anti-corruption efforts. The CPIB placesemphasis on disgorging illicit gains by pursuing money laundering offences, as highlighted by
the introduction of cases involving money laundering and the confiscation of unexplained wealth.
In the current era of transnational corruption, working with other countries to seize and freeze
assets is a key priority. An evolving challenge is the tracking and tracing of crypto-currencies.
The participant from the Attorney General’s Chambers reviewed seminal cases in the sentencing
of private-sector corruption cases and explained Singapore’s legislative approach to inchoate
corruption offences, in which an attempt, or aiding and abetting, to commit a corrupt act isdeemed as commitment of the corrupt act itself. Potential future developments include theprosecution’s proposed introduction of sentencing matrices for corruption crimes and possible
legislative amendments that enhance penalties for corruption.
16. THAILAND: In July 2018, the new Organic Act on Counter Corruption, B.E. 2561 came into force.
The new law (i) expands the coverage of the law to include “Public Officers” (including certain
judges and officers of independent organizations, and other officials prescribed by law); (ii)requires the review of corruption cases by the National Anti-Corruption Commission; (iii)
requires the transfer of all corruption arrestees to the NACC office in Bangkok within 48 hours;and (iv) provides for time limits in the process of filing corruption cases in court. The “Temple
Corruption Scheme”, which involved defrauding the government of public funds and took placein temples throughout Thailand, was introduced to illustrate the complexity of corruption
schemes. Problems faced in Thailand include the lack of manpower of investigators, time limits
under the new organic law, and the complexity and difficulty of the extradition process. In
response, the NACC is appointing more than 600 new investigators, and specialized corruption
courts have recently been opened in Bangkok and 9 other regions.
17. VIET NAM: Property embezzlement has been, and will continue to be, a common corruption
crime in Viet Nam, especially in the private sector. The Criminal Code 2005 has been revised inorder to deal with the current corruption situation in Viet Nam and to meet the public’s
requirements for, and interest in, the legal reform process. The presentation from Viet Nam
addressed the supervision of investigation, prosecution and adjudication of embezzlement cases.
After introducing the substantive law and elements of embezzlement, practical tips on matters tobe proven and evidence required to prove embezzlement were presented. Key matters during thesupervision of the investigation process include determination of the legal foundation for- 24 -

instituting criminal proceedings, collecting documents and evidence through search and seizure,preparation and interrogation of offenders, taking testimony of witnesses, conducting appraisals
to establish damages caused by the corruption, and drafting the indictment. Prosecutors alsoneed to improve their trial preparation, practice and presentation skills, such as conducting athorough review of all documents, evidence, and witness statements, preparing for and making
arguments at trial, making rebuttals and other responses.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
18. Corruption undermines the rule of law, erodes public confidence in the state, and hinders
sustainable social and economic development. While the widespread adoption of UNCAC has
led to improved anti-corruption enforcement, the increasingly transnational and complex natureof corruption has increased the challenges faced by anti-corruption practitioners, particularly inthe area of international cooperation. While anti-corruption authorities struggle to overcome
challenges in obtaining MLA—which range from different legal and procedural frameworks tolanguage barriers—delays in the provision of assistance enable criminals to conceal the proceedsof corruption and evade justice. Many countries continue to face traditional forms of corruption,such as bribery, embezzlement, and smuggling. Meanwhile, new modi operandi have been
evolving, such as avoiding traditional financial systems through the misuse of various forms oflegitimate business transactions, the role of lawyers in corruption schemes, set-off debt, the useof money changers to transfer illicit funds, and the use of cryptocurrencies for corruption.
Among these trends, private-sector corruption is becoming a greater priority in many
jurisdictions.
19. To overcome these challenges, all countries are encouraged to: (i) enhance efforts to engage ininternational cooperation, and, in doing so, strengthen the use of informal cooperation
mechanisms, direct law enforcement cooperation, and networking among anti-corruption
agencies; (ii) proactively seize and confiscate the proceeds of corruption and related assets; (iii)utilize special investigation measures, such as telecommunications interception, undercover
operations, cooperative agreements, etc.; (iv) provide training to respond to new corruption
trends; and (v) continue anti-corruption prevention efforts, including through public education
and awareness programmes.

29 NOVEMBER 2018
DA NANG, VIET NAM- 25 -