Ethics Newsline®

A weekly digest of worldwide ethics news

Media Reports Focus on Government Ethics

Apr 28th, 2008 • Posted in: News

IOC head tells critics of China to back off; U.S. Senate ethics committee admonishes senator in aftermath of federal prosecutor firings; president-elect of Taiwan cleared of graft charges; British PM Gordon Brown calls for U.N. probe into events in Zimbabwe

VARIOUS DATELINES
Ethics issues concerning government, human rights, and allegations of corruption were highlighted by the world press last week. Among the stories:

  • International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge said the international community should stop hectoring China with criticism over its human rights record, UPI reports. “You can’t obtain anything in China with a loud voice,” Rogge warned. “It took us 200 years to evolve from the French Revolution. China started in 1949.” Rogge added: “The games we believe, over time, will have a good influence on social evolution in China.”
  • U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics last week admonished Republican senator Pete Domenici (N.M.) for creating “an appearance of impropriety” when he called a U.S. attorney about a federal corruption case. According to a Reuters report, the panel criticized Domenici’s call to David Iglesias, one of nine federal prosecutors fired by the Bush administration. Iglesias later told lawmakers he felt pressured by the call, which concerned a probe into alleged voting irregularities by Democrats. While issuing a formal “qualified admonition,” the panel said it found no substantial evidence that Domenici tried to improperly influence the investigation.
  • The Supreme Court of Taiwan last week upheld a 2007 ruling that acquitted Taiwanese president-elect Ma Ying-jeou of graft charges, reports the Jurist. Ma is due to take office next month. Ma was acquitted in August 2007 on charges “that he diverted $333,000 of public money into his private back account,” notes the Jurist.
  • British prime minister Gordon Brown has called on the international community to protest what he called the “climate of fear” in Zimbabwe following the recent disputed elections there, the BBC reports. Brown spoke out against attacks on opposition activists and demanded a U.N. investigation into human rights abuses. The ruling party in Zimbabwe denies that anyone has died in political violence. As this edition of Newsline went to press, opposition parties had retained seven seats in Parliament, according to a report from ITV.

Sources: UPI, Apr. 26 — Reuters, Apr. 26 — Jurist, Apr. 26 — BBC, Apr. 26 — ITV, Apr. 26 — AFP, Apr. 24.

For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Apr. 14 — Related Newsline story, Mar. 5 — Related Newsline story, Dec. 31, 2007 — Related Newsline story, Sep. 24, 2007 — Related Newsline story, July 16, 2007.

Print This Story Print This Story Email This Story Email This Story

2 Responses »

  1. [...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, Apr. 28 – Related Newsline story, Apr. 21 – Related Newsline story, Apr. 14 [...]

  2. [...] more information, see: Related Newsline story, May 19 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 28 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 14 — Related Newsline story, Apr. 14 [...]