ANTI-CORRUPTION LAW GOES BACK TO ASSEMBLY

C O N F I D E N T I A L MAPUTO 000517

SIPDIS
STATE FOR INL AHENRY-PLOTTS AND JLYLE
DOJ FOR OPDAT JSILVERWOOD AND ICITAP EBEINHART
PRETORIA FOR INL SSNYDER
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/14/2014
TAGS: KCOR KCRM KJUS EAID MZ PROG
SUBJECT: ANTI-CORRUPTION LAW GOES BACK TO ASSEMBLY

REF: A. 03 MAPUTO 1532


B. MAPUTO 487


1. (U) Summary. The Anti-Corruption Law passed by the
National Assembly in November 2003 (Ref A) will be
re-examined in parliament on April 15. It was sent back to
the Assembly by President Chissano, who refused to sign the
legislation, due to questions regarding the constitutionality
of one its provisions. The delay in approving the law has
already had negative consequences for the Attorney General's
Anti-Corruption Unit, in particular regarding additional
staff resources authorized under he law (Ref B). Some
observers also have speculated that the delays in
implementation can be attributed to concerns regarding the
mandatory reporting responsibilities for auditors. End
summary.


2. (C) The law requires a declaration of assets by public
servants, provides for whistle-blower protection, and
authorizes the creation of a Central Anti-Corruption Office.
The pro-government daily Noticias reported that the President
considered the exclusive authority of the Attorney General's
Office (where such a Central Office would reside, and provide
own resources for the Anti-Corruption Unit created in 2002)
for cases involving corruption and influence peddling to be
problematic. He reportedly would prefer the entire judiciary
to have jurisdiction for cases. Additionally, mission
officers have been told that the provision for automatic
denial of requests for government permits after a 45-day
period is also an issue. The original draft of the law
foresaw automatic approval after a short period, if no
negative reply was issued by a government entity. This would
have avoided a common friction point for corrupt officials to
demand bribes. However the law as passed includes the
reverse, which could prove highly problematic and possibly
unconstitutional in certain situations, for example, in
registering a birth or death.


3. (SBU) On March 26, the Attorney General described the
negative consequences caused by the lack of staff and budget
envisioned in the legislation. Unfortunately, even once the
Assembly revises the relevant passages of the law and the
President signs it into law, it could still be a considerable
wait before implementing regulations are drafted and
approved. Post is aware of a similar problem regarding the
implementing regulations for the Anti-Money Laundering Law
passed by the Assembly in December 2001, which was ratified
in February 2002. In April 2004, central bank officials told
Econ/Pol Chief that the draft implementing regulations are
now complete and they hope to see them finalized this year.


4. (C) Comment: In addition to officially stated reasons
for the delays in approving the Anti-Corruption Law, post has
heard speculation regarding complaints made to the President
by the major accounting and consulting firms present in
Maputo. They claim that being forced to adhere to the
mandatory reporting requirements, if and when they encounter
negative information during an audit, would put them out of
business. End Comment
LA LIME