Search Results for: sextortion

Needed – Zero-Tolerance Policies for Sexual Abuses By: Frank Vogl, Board Chair, Partnership for Transparency December 12, 2022 Professor Purna Sen does not use weasel words and vague phrases when discussing sexual abuse and sextortion. She does not argue that we must seek gradual change or aim to just curb criminal practices against women that rage across the world. She says “My focus is on elimination.” It surprised me that a recent meeting of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) devoted its first session to the issue of sextortion. This is a topic that for far too long has been largely buried by humanitarian and anti-corruption organizations under the broad heading of gender issues. IFRC is seeking to break the sextortion silence. IFRC could not have chosen a better lead conference speaker than Professor Sen, Visiting Professor at the Child and Woman Abuse Studies Unit at London Metropolitan University. Her work over many years for the United Nations and many other organizations has made her a global leader on the critical issues of gender equality, violence against women, and sexual harassment. She stressed that “for too long we have placed the greatest emphasis on responding to the crimes of sextortion, rather than on prevention.” Professor Sen called for significant cultural changes, noting that the patterns and contours of inequality relate to patterns of power, which is fundamental to the relationships between the abused and the abusers. Women Suffer Most From Corruption IFRC asked me to comment on Professor Sen’s remarks and I did with considerable trepidation. Through the lens of anti-corruption, I have been striving to understand the issue of sextortion for about 15 years, all the while sensitive to the comment made by my friend and colleague at Partnership for Transparency (PTF), Indira Sandilya, that “women experience corruption differently and disproportionately from men.” Currently, Indira is leading PTF’s collaboration with the Center for Advocacy and Research in India on a gender-based violence project in Rajasthan. According to surveys, there are large numbers of very poor women who dare not go on public transport or to the market alone for fear of being abused. In Rajasthan, as is the case in dozens of the world’s poorer countries, women who are victims of sexual abuse take grave personal risks in speaking publicly, let alone seeking to press charges against their abusers in the courts. Hundreds of millions of women across the world are too poor to buy their way out of difficult situations or finance legal action afterward. Their financial vulnerability makes them targets. These might be young women being confronted by professors at universities who demand sex for good grades, women walking the refugee trails who know the risks of encountering sexual predators, women seeking licenses and permits for small businesses, or women just striving to get employment. Quid Pro Quo While sextortion manifests itself in many ways, the common feature is quid pro quo. It is the blunt abuse of power by men who place (mostly) women in horrendous positions where to consent to the demands can shatter their lives, yet to refuse and […]

On July 1, 2020, the Partnership for Transparency (PTF) and the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area (UNA-NCA) hosted experts from Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States in a 90-minute conversation on one of the worst forms of corruption. Nancy Hendry of the International Association of Women Judges began using the term “Sextortion” a number of years ago to bring attention to practice of women being sexually exploited by corrupt actors, primarily men in positions of power. She joined a panel of experts to discuss the topic, including Francisca Chinelo Ekwonu, founder of New Girl on Campus; Dr. Ortum Merkel of the United Nations University; Marie Chêne, Research Director at Transparency International; Dena Shayne of the Amara Legal Center and Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Just Corps Fellow; and Nancy Hendry of the International Association of Women Judges. Indira Sandilya, a Senior Adviser at the PTF and Board Member of the Partnership for Transparency India also contributed to the conversation.

1 in 5 people experience Sextortion or know someone who has -- Latin American TI Barometer 2019 Recommended viewing BBC EYE ON AFRICA Sex for Grades: Undercover inside Nigerian and Ghanaian universities This remarkable BBC undercover investigation in Nigeria provides first-person accounts. Universities in Nigeria and Ghana have been plagued by stories of sexual harassment by lecturers and professors for decades. The UNA-NCA and PTF Anti Corruption Forum present a special virtual global discussion on SEXTORTION in developing and emerging market countries - and indeed in our own communities How acute is the Sextortion issue? What must we do to counter Sextortion? Sex + Corruption = Sextortion The abuse of power to obtain sexual favors – specific demands by men in power of sex in return for, for example, obtaining a job, getting a passing college grade, ensuring safe passage as a migrating refugee, obtaining vital official documents. What all the victims have in common is that they are in situations where they have few means to secure legal, or community support and recourse – making them all the more vulnerable. Please join outstanding experts from Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States in a 90-minute conversation on one of the worst forms of corruption. Guest experts include: Dr. Ortrun Merkle, Researcher, United Nations University, Graduate School of Governance. Author of doctoral work: The Myth of Gender-Neutral Power: Corruption and Gender Norms. December 2018. Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowob, Executive Director, Stand to End Rape Initiative (STER). TIME 100 NEXT Honouree, 2019 Commonwealth Young Person of the Year. 2019 Africa & Europe Winner, Commonwealth Award for Excellence in Development Work, 2018 British Council Future Leaders, Connect Member, 2018 Obama Foundation Fellow in Africa. Francisca Chinelo Ekwonu, founder of “New Girl On Campus (NGOC),” official at the Centre for Social Awareness, Advocacy and Ethics (CSAAE), Lagos, Nigeria. Nancy Hendry – International Association of Women Judges (IAWJ), Washington DC – a leading authority and writer on the challenges of sextortion. Marie Chêne, Transparency International, Berlin, Research Director – TI recently published: Breaking the Silence around Sextortion: The Links between Power, Sex and Corruption. Dena Shayne, Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Justice Corps Fellow at the Amara Legal Center in Washington DC. “I view Sextortion as the single most challenging area for anti-corruption reform and arguably the single most pervasive form of corruption across the world,” - Frank Vogl, Chair, PTF Board of Directors on PassBlue.

Also – an article by Frank Vogl, published September 24, 2024, by the Bretton Woods Committee – Can the World Bank Implement Its Vital New Gender Strategy? (https://www.brettonwoods.org/article/can-the-world-bank-implement-its-vital-new-gender-strategy)

Civil society anti-corruption leaders from more than 50 countries signed a letter to the World Bank in support of its ambitious Gender Strategy 2024 – 2030: Accelerate Gender Equality for a Sustainable, Resilient, and Inclusive Future. However, they warned that the goals will be unattainable without significant emphasis on anti-corruption. The World Bank’s draft gender strategy makes no mention of corruption. The civil society leaders and anti-corruption experts who signed the letter recognize that gender-based violence yields horrendous, long-term trauma for its victims and is a crucial impediment to gender equality in all areas of economic and human development. Therefore, the roles that corruption plays in this area must not be overlooked. That is why, for example, so many of the organizations whose leaders have signed the letter are implementing important anti-sextortion projects. The more than 90 individuals who are signatories include members of the Board of Directors and the Management Team of Partnership for Transparency (PTF), the leaders of PTF’s Asia and Europe affiliates, the Board leadership of Transparency International (TI), and the Executive Directors of more than 40 TI national chapters. In addition, the list of those signing the letter include anti-corruption scholars, as well as founders of such organizations as Accountability Lab; Centre for Social Awareness, Advocacy, and Ethics in Nigeria; and Global Financial Integrity. The letter calls on the World Bank to deepen its partnerships with civil society activists and provide them with greater direct support, noting that their engagement is vital to secure and sustain gender rights. Further, the letter calls for the World Bank to give greater prominence in the strategy to the issue of countering gender-based violence.

The Anti-Corruption Forum seeks to enhance public awareness of the challenges of corruption by convening events with expert speakers and panelists, and with audiences drawn from civil society, government, business, and academia. The Forum’s focus is on strengthening awareness and understanding of today’s most pressing U.S. and international corruption issues. Sorry, no event available currently. Please check back later. Subscribe here Event Updates Suggest a speaker or topic Contact UsThe Latest from the Anti-Corruption Forum Event Introduction: Paula Boland, President of the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area (UNA-NCA) Moderators: Shayna Vayser, Managing Director of Advocacy & Policy Strategy at UNA-NCA Frank Vogl, Board Chair of the Partnership for Transparency (PTF) Panelists: Francisca Chinelo Ekwonu, founder of New Girl on Campus Dr. Ortum Merkel, United Nations University Marie Chêne, Research Director at Transparency International Dena Shayne, Amara Legal Center and Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Just Corps Fellow Nancy Hendry, International Association of Women Judges Indira Sandilya Senior Adviser, PTF and Board Member, Partnership for Transparency India Nancy Hendry of the International Association of Women Judges began using the term “Sextortion” to draw attention to a type of exploitation that combines sex and the abuse of power – specific demands by men in power of sex in return for, for example, obtaining a job, getting a passing college grade, ensuring safe passage as a migrating refugee, obtaining vital official documents. What all the victims have in common is that they are in situations where they have few means to secure legal, or community support and recourse – making them all the more vulnerable. On July 1, 2020, the Partnership for Transparency (PTF) and the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area (UNA-NCA) hosted experts from Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States in a 90-minute conversation on one of the worst forms of corruption in an effort to better understand the phenomena and what can be done to prevent it. Guests included Francisca Chinelo Ekwonu, founder of New Girl on Campus; Dr. Ortum Merkel of the United Nations University; Marie Chêne, Research Director at Transparency International; Dena Shayne of the Amara Legal Center and Equal Justice Works Crime Victims Just Corps Fellow; and Nancy Hendry of the International Association of Women Judges. Indira Sandilya, a Senior Adviser at the PTF and Board Member of the Partnership for Transparency India also contributed to the conversation. READ MORE SEXTORTION: A Crucial Global Humanitarian-Corruption Challenge July 2, 2020On July 1, 2020, the Partnership for Transparency (PTF) and the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area (UNA-NCA) hosted experts from Asia, Africa, Europe and the United States… The IMF, Public Finance, Corruption, and Civil Society October 28, 2019Vitor Gaspar, Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Fiscal Affairs Department, presented the IMF’s Fiscal Monitor report on corruption at the latest PTF Anti Corruption Forum event. The event, co-sponsored by the Center for… The Critical Challenges of Human Trafficking and Corruption September 27, 2018On September 20, 2018, UNA-NCA's International Law Committee and The Partnership for Transparency Fund presented The Critical Challenges of Human Trafficking and Corruption before an overflow crowd at the United Nations Foundation. Can We Make Anti-Corruption Sustainable? July 31, 2018The Center for International Private Enterprise and Partnership for Transparency jointly hosted a public [...]