Ethics Newsline®

Ted Stevens pleads not guilty to charges he lied about gifts; Israeli PM, under investigation for alleged corruption, to resign; South African leader expected to continue his presidential bid despite graft trial

VARIOUS DATELINES
Corruption cases against government officials made news last week. Among the top stories:

• Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens last week pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he lied about hundreds of thousands of dollars in gifts from an oil service contractor. Stevens, the longest-serving Republican in the U.S. Senate, was indicted last week on several counts of lying on Senate disclosure forms, according to press reports. Stevens has been the focus of a corruption investigation for more than a year.
• Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert, at the center of numerous corruption allegations, last week said he will resign. Olmert said he will not run in his party’s September 17 primary and would leave office shortly thereafter to clear the way for his successor, reports the Jerusalem Post. Olmert has denied any wrongdoing.
• Officials of South Africa’s ANC Party last week characterized corruption charges against leader Jacob Zuma as politically motivated and said they would stand behind Zuma in next year’s elections. The Agence France-Presse reports that Zuma faces 16 charges, including money laundering and racketeering. His trail begins this week. Zuma continues to maintain that he is innocent.

Sources: Washington Post, Aug. 1 — AFP, Aug. 1 — NPR, July 31 — Jerusalem Post, July 31.

For more information, see: Related Newsline story, July 21 — Related Newsline story, May 12 — Related Newsline story, Feb. 18 — Related Newsline story, Aug. 20, 2007 — Related Newsline Commentary, Aug 6, 2007.