Rethinking the International Anti-Corruption Agenda: Civil Society, Human Rights and Democracy

I. INTRODUCTIONScholars and reformers should resist the temptation to encapsulate the problem of corruption in the "developing" world as strictly one of bureaucratic breakdown or of decay in the rule of law. Such approaches limit policy options to a series of superficial choices which normally do not have lasting effects. The first step towards building a long-term solution to corruption is to understand acts of corruption as symptoms of a deeper problem in the relationship between state and society in general and in the functioning of democracy in particular.The objective of this article is to insert the discussion of anti- corruption policies within broader debates on accountability, democracy, and human rights. In Part II, this article begins by offering a new, expansive definition of accountability, which breaks with minimalist, bureaucratic versions of the concept. It also address the failings of elections as pro-accountability mechanisms and derives from this discussion the need for the development of policy strategies designed to directly attack corruption as such.In Part III, this article then explores the diversity of pro- accountability strategies available. Specifically, it examines the costs and benefits of what I call "Weberian" and "marketization" strategies, linked respectively to the "old" and "new" public management approaches. It also explores innovative recent strategies based on the creation of specialized independent agencies and the development of "social accountability" initiatives.In Part IV, this article defends the importance of society-based approaches as a means to reinvigorate anti-corruption policy. It examines the various dimensions along which such approaches can vary and points out that not all civil society approaches are equally effective. Many society-based initiatives can easily get trapped in the same bureaucratic and legalistic traps as more traditional approaches. This article argues that the best way to avoid this slippage is to ground society-based strategies in a "human rights approach" to development. Finally, it concludes with some general thoughts on the broader challenges of anti-corruption strategies and their relationship to the advancement of democracy and human rights.II. CONSTRUCTING ACCOUNTABILITYIt is generally accepted that the best way to combat corruption and thereby guarantee the public interest nature of the state is by strengthening government accountability.1 But what exactly does this concept mean? In its most literal sense, the term "account-ability" means little more than the "ability" or the "possibility" that someone or something can be "accounted for" or "counted up."2 Under this minimalist understanding, all that the accountability of government would require is the most basic form of bookkeeping (for example, this many miles of highway were built last year, this much money was spent, this number of students attended public schools, etc.). It might also require the existence of someone who could possibly view the accounts if he or she so wished, a principle of "minimal exposure" if you will, but not much else. Transparency, punishment, performance, corruption, external surveillance, the public interest, power, and principal-agent relationships are all left out of this basic understanding of the concept of accountability.Such a definition is clearly insufficient. Basic bookkeeping plus minimal exposure are not powerful enough levers to generate positive feedback cycles of expanding accountability. If my colleague at the Public Works Ministry knows that I built 300 miles of highway last year, would this in itself promote good governance? What if my 300 miles were made out of below standard concrete? What if the budget had called for me to build 1000 miles? What if my colleague is actually my subordinate whose job depends on his maintaining favor with me? Clearly we need a much more robust definition of accountability for this term to do the work we expect of it. …