Corruption that time we should apply good governance and should ensure human rights for every person
Chapter – One
Introductory Part
1.1 Introduction:
Corruption is not a new phenomenon. What is new and worrying is the magnitude and size of corruption. It has spread its tentacles to every sphere of national life. It is one of the biggest threats to development. It can tear the very fabric of the society and, infact, it is doing so. Corruption benefits the rich and the well-to-do. It enriches the rich and disproportionably affects the poor, unprotected and the underprivileged and thereby it deepens their deprivation. Unless it is checked, the governments and people will have to pay a very heavy price in the consequent result of lower incomes, lower investments and lower developments resulting in volatile economic swings.
In recent years, the subject of corruption has received considerable attention. Work on governance has brought it into the light and it is no longer taboo. Corruption is being addressed by financial institutions, government agencies, bilateral donors, international organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and development professionals. Its causes have been measured empirically, as have its impacts on human development. Institutions and administrative procedures have been overhauled. Countries have negotiated and signed international anti-corruption conventions. Good governance and human rights are mutually reinforcing. Human rights principles provide a set of values to guide the work of governments and other political and social actors. They also provide a set of performance standards against which these actors can be held accountable. Moreover, human rights principles inform the content of good governance efforts: they may inform the development of legislative frameworks, policies, programmes, budgetary allocations and other measures.
If we want to avoid corruption that time we should apply good governance and should ensure human rights for every person. Because, if we do not reduce the Corruption that time the Human Righs will be violated. If we want to reduce Corruption that time we should ensure Good Governance.
1.2 Aims & Objectives of the Study:
It is very important to identify the aims and objectives of any research. Describe all the goal of this research on Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights Nexus.
My Aims and Objectives of the study are as follows;
- To define the Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights etc.
- To explore the present situation of Corruption in Bangladesh.
- To explore the conditions of Good Governance.
- To find out the procedure how we can ensure the Good Governance.
- To explore the present situation of Human Rights in Bangladesh.
- To find out the procedure how we can implement the Human Rights.
- To explore the relation between Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights.
- To find out the effect of Corruption and Good Governance.
Then to discuss Law and Practice which exists in Bangladesh. But there is no appropriate law in Bangladesh for the protection of Human Rights. For that reason l try to prescribe which law is appropriate for reducing Corruption on Human Rights.
1.3 Methodology:
Methodology is very important for any research. Without adopting any methods, it is difficult to contribution. As a necessary to optimum methods to create anything. The optimum outcome of the research depends largely on the adopting of the proper methods related to the topics in the field of the proper investigation and sufficient care. When prepared this research followed the some methods i.e. the Imperial Methods, sufficient care method etc. respectively where it is applicable. The techniques of data collection followed in this research are interviewing, questionnaire, uses of documents sources. Also helped in teachers, friends and different website collecting the topic related information and statistic.
Though there is nothing codified about Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights Nexus in any academic book or magazines so it was very much tough for me to collect the information data. For this work, need to go in many welfare organization. For complication of this study, had been also following the historical, analytical and imperial method.
1.4 Limitation of the Study:
Every research study has some limitations in true sense. So this research monograph is not the exception of this limitation and limitations reduced the scope of the study in some changes. The main limitation of the study is the time binding’s work. The time is not enough for the study. To create any good research on any topics and subject, that time prerequisites sufficient instrument and enhance more books in university library but our library is not sufficient for making this research on Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights nexus. There is no study that done on this topic before, so there was no perfect guideline. That is another important limitation of this study.
1.5 Importance of the Study:
The study is the great importance; the study will help to know about Corruption and Good Governance with Human Rights perspective in Bangladesh.
No study on this topic has ever been done before, so a lot of new ideas have come in front of eyes. have got good knowledge about the corruption and good governance in Bangladesh, which will help us in different ways.
The seen that many times debate arise on the role of the Societies for reducing of the Corruption. This study will help to solve the reason of debate by some new ideas.
1.6 Scope of the Study:
The scope of this study includes the area of information required to collect and analyze regarding, the determination of the Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights Nexus. The entire study will focus on the information of Corruption and Good Governance in Bangladesh.
1.7 Shadow of the Whole Research:
The title of the study denotes the subject matter of the study. As the title of the Research Monograph is Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights Nexus .It is very difficult to read the matters relating to the Corruption and Good Governance which is necessary for discussion of the topic maintaining the sequence of the discussion and come to conclusion. So this subject matter being the Corruption, Good Governance and Human Rights Nexus, the definition and meaning of the term, the legal instrument about it according to national and international level and find out the loopholes of the existing laws.
Chapter-Two
Concept and Status of Corruption
Corruption has recently been the subject of substantial theorizing and empirical research, and this has produced a bewildering array of alternative approaches, explanations, typologies and remedies. Corruption is understood as everything from the paying of bribes to civil servants and the simple theft of public purses, to a wide range of dubious economic and political practices in which businesspeople, politicians and bureaucrats enrich themselves. The issue of corruption is an old one, that has re-entered the current political and economic debate from the new interest in the role of the state in the developing world, and from the assumption that the state is an indispensable instrument for economic development, redistribution and welfare.
2.1 Definition of Corruption:
Defining corruption is important in the context of global efforts to reduce its influence in public life. But is not an easy task to define corruption. Webster Dictionary describes corruption as morality, state of being corrupted and according to the dictionary corruption means a state of decomposition, dishonest, rotten, pollute, immoral and bad. A definition has been found in a publication of the World Bank headed “VIETNAM-Combating Corruption” as “Corruption practice refers to the act of offering, giving, receiving or soliciting anything of value with the aim of influencing the action of a public official in the procurement process or the contract execution. The easy and artistic meaning of corruption may be an act against ethics. In a great sense, corruption means the disobedience of a virtue or sanctity. In the administrative view, corruption has a specific meaning. If a public servant abuses power or designation or does a wrong or refrains from doing justified act with a view to fulfilling his desires or giving undue privileges to his relatives, friends or any person, such act will be considered as corruption. Professor Robert Cligaurd of South Africa gave the following equation regarding corruption:[1]
Corruption = monopoly + Discretion –Accountability – Salary.
From the above quotation it is said that if monopoly and discretionary power of government is increased and on the other hand if there is no accountability and salary is lower standard, the ultimate effect is the promotion of corruption. But in the opposite manner, if the authority of the first two elements is decreased and the authority of the last two elements is increased, corruption will be alleviated.
Corruption is a social, legal, economic and political concept enmeshed in ambiguity and consequently encouraging controversy. The ambiguity and controversy result from the fact that a number of competing approaches to understanding corruption is available. Naturally, definitions of corruption focus on one of several aspects of the phenomenon; various approaches to c corruption can be placed into five groups. These are public-interest centered, market centered, public-office-entered, public-opinion-entered and legalistic. Proponents of the public interest centered approach believe that corruption is in some way injurious to or destructive of public interest. Market centered enthusiasts suggests that norms governing public office have shifted from a mandatory pricing model to a free market model, thereby considerably changing the nature of corruption . Public centered protagonists stress the fact that misuse by incumbents of public office for private gain is corruption.11 those who believe in public opinion centered definitions of corruption emphasize the perspectives of public opinion about the conduct of politicians, government and probity of public servants.[2]
2.2 Forms and Types of Corruption:
a) Forms of corruption:-
Bribery: Bribery is the bestowing of a benefit in order to unduly influence an action or decision. It can be initiated by a person who seeks bribes or by a person who offers and pays brides. Active bribery refers to the offering or paying of the bribe, while passive bribery refers to the receiving of the bride. The “benefit” can be virtually any inducement, such as money, company shares, inside information, entertainment and employment of the mere promise of incentive. The benefits gained can be direct or indirect. It can be described as indirect gains when the benefits flow e.g. to a friend, family, private business, campaign funds or political parties.[3]
Embezzlement and Fraud: These offences involve the taking or conversion of money, property or valuable items by an individual who is not entitled to them but, by virtue of his or her position or employment, has access to them. Employment-related equipment, such as motor vehicles, may be used for private purposes. Those offences do not include `law_article`theft’’ per se but only situation involving a public official or where the public interest is crucially affected.[4]
Extortion: Extortion relies on coercion, such as the use or threat of violence or the exposure of damaging information, to induce cooperation. Extortion can be committed by government officials but they can also be victims of it. An example of extortion is when police officers threaten to arrest people to extract money from them.[5]
A conflict of interests: It arises when a person, often a public sector employee or official, is influenced by personal considerations when doing his or her job. Thus, decisions are made for the wrong reasons. This kind of corruption involves, for example, engaging in transactions, selling influence, or acquiring a position that is incompatible with one’s official duties for the purpose of illegal enrichment. An example of this kind of corruption is when a public official, who has access to secret information, uses the information to take decisions concerning personal investments.[6]
Favoritism, Nepotism and Cronyism: Favoritism is a general term used to describe use of power to make decisions on the basis of personal relations rather then on objective grounds. There are several forms of favoritism. Among the most commonly cited are nepotism and cronyism. Nepotism applies to a situation in which a person uses his or her public power to obtain a favour for a member of his or her family. Cronyism is a broader term than nepotism, and covers situations where preferences are given to friends and colleagues and favoured political supporters. These two kinds of corruption, nepotism and cronyism, can easily overlap.[7]
Political Corruption: Political corruption is the abuse of entrusted power by political leaders for private gain, with the objective of increasing power or private wealth. It need not involve money changing hands; it may take the form of granting favors that “poison politics and threaten democracy”. An example of political corruption is when political parties or candidates receive money in exchange for the goodwill towards the entity or group making the contribution.[8]
b) Types of Corruption:
There are three broad classifications of corruption, which are however not mutually exclusive:
a) Petty and Grand corruption:
Petty Corruption: Practiced on a smaller scale. Defined as the use of public office for private benefit in the course of delivering a pubic service. Usually involves relatively small amounts of money, including bribery (grease money or speed payments) The public servant abuses his/her position by accepting a benefit for what is a routine transaction or approval. The direct victim of this abuse of power is the citizen.
Grand Corruption: The most dangerous and covert type of corruption. Instances where policy making, its design and implementation are compromised by corrupt practices. Found where public officers in high positions (such as councilors), in the process of making decisions of significant economic value, routinely demand bribes or kickbacks for ensuring that tenders or contracts are awarded to specific contractors.[9]
b) Political and Business corruption:
Political Corruption: Occurs predominantly in developing and less developed countries. Usually associated with the electoral process. Includes:
- voting irregularities
- nepotism and cronyism
- rule of a few
- false political promises
- paying journalists for favourable coverage of candidates and parties
- influencing voters by the distribution of money, food and/or drink
- holding on to power against the will of the people.
Business Corruption: Often not regarded as a crime, rather as a means to accelerate business processes. Proponents claim that the end result is not affected; the mechanisms used to achieve the result are simply accelerated; In essence, bureaucracy is bypassed and time is utilized. Includes bribery, insider trading, money laundering, embezzlement, tax evasion and accounting irregularities.[10]
c) Chaotic and Organized corruption:
Chaotic Corruption: A disorganized system where there is no clarity regarding whom to bribe and how much payment should be offered. There is:
- no guarantee that further bribes will not have to be paid to other officials;
- no reasonable assurance that the favour will be delivered;
- no coordination between the recipients of benefits, with the result
- that the price of corruption is often inflated
All these distinctions have no value: no form of corruption is better or worse than another.
Organized Corruption: A well-organized system of corruption in which there is a clear idea:
- of whom to bribe;
- how much should be offered
- and are confident that they will receive the favour in return.
Organized corruption is often perpetrated by crime gangs and syndicates and includes white-collar crime and identity theft[11]
2.3 The Causes of Corruption:
Why corruption develops varies from one country to the next and there is seldom a single identifiable cause. Some of the causes which have been suggested are: poverty; poor administrative structures; weak judicial, legislative and regulatory frameworks; inadequate education; and cultural and social value systems that condone corrupt practices. Other possible causes are inadequate civil servants remuneration; too broad discretionary powers of civil servants and a lack of accountability, monitoring and transparency. It has also been argued that planned economies, where many prices are below market-clearing levels provide incentives to payoffs and so does the presence of organized crime.
It is often claimed that poverty is a very important factor in the development of corruption and that can true. It is for example, obvious that the risk of corruption in the public sector increases if the civil-service wages are so low that they do not allow public workers to support their families. If poverty was, however, the only cause of corruption it would be hard to explain the fact that most of those involved in “grand corruption” have much more than they and their families will ever need. It can therefore been argued that corruption “can emerge from wealth and abundance, or it can emerge from the lack if it”.
Other factors that may not be causes of corruption but can certainly encourage it are a low educational level which keeps the population passive and ignorant of its rights and the lack of political will to fight corruption. The motivation to remain honest may be further weakened if senior officials and political leaders use public office for private gain or of those who resist corruption lack protection.[12]
2.4 The Consequences of Corruption:
Corruption adversely affects economic performance, undermines employment opportunities and poverty reduction. Petty corruption raises the cost of engaging in productive activities. Its burden falls disproportionately on poor people. For those without money or connections, petty corruption in public health or police services can have serious consequences. Corruption affects the lives of poor people through many other channels as well. It diverts public resources away from socially valuable areas, such as education and infrastructure investments that could benefit poor people like health clinics, roads etc. It lowers the quality of infrastructure, since kickbacks, are more lucrative on equipment purchases. The way funds are allocated gets distorted, foreign aid gets reduced and productive capacity gets further weakened. Where corruption involves the transfer of funds outside the country, it seriously undermines economic development. Corruption also undermines delivery of public services.[13]
Corruption flourishes because there are people in power who benefit from the present system. Unfortunately those who benefits from power are also those who have to initiate changes to check corruption. It is, therefore, important for people to play and active role in this regard. The public interest litigation and electronic and print media can be used effectively in shaping public opinion. NGOs can play an active role in taking up individual cases for fighting corruption or bringing about systemic changes. Children in schools may be mobilized to create a social climate for making corruption unacceptable. Schools can reach large numbers of children, and through them, their parents and the community at large.[14]
Corruption is socially unjust. In legal sense it is abuse of power and in economic sense, it implies plundering of state resources. Corruption violates trust and confidence bestowed upon public bodies by the public. Corruption has two main impacts on the society: firstly, it has distributional impact as it promotes inequality in society by the unjust enrichment of some of the people at the expense of wellbeing of vast majority of people. In most cases, poor and most vulnerable people are the direct victims of corruption.[15]
Secondly, it undermines the credibility and legitimacy in the public institutions and governments. Corruption hinders economic growth and development, and undermines democratic processes. Corruption diminishes the legitimacy of the governmental institutions by shaking public confidence in dealing with the government. Corruption lowers the flow of foreign investment by increasing the cost of doing business. Corruption creates societal instability by sowing the seeds of social and political tensions. It deepens social inequalities, causes unequal distribution of resources, erodes popular confidence in the public institutions, and creates a climate of secrecy. Corruption contributes to the inefficiency to the public administration since main motivation behind corruption is illegal enrichment through abuse of power rather than serving public interest. In this way, corruption impoverishes and degrades the quality of life of mass people. Apart from economic impact of corruption, corruption threatens social value.
Corruptions in judiciary and law enforcing agencies have emerged as a stumbling block to realization of human rights and threat to rule of law, democracy and administration of justice.[16]
2.5 Recommendations for Minimizing Corruption:
Corruption is criminal activities; it taints the giver and the taker in equal measure. Corruption has permeated the entire social system in our country. So, alleviating corruption is the prime concern for not only the government but also the nation as a whole. A single measure is not sufficient to remove existing corruption and prevent corruption. So the following measure can be adopted in this regard:
1. Political commitment is the sine qua non to prevent corruption. Democracy is the basic requirement of good governance. At present, democracy is passing miserable days. Long practices confrontational politics and political repression have made democracy paralyzed. But elected and effective parliament can play effective role in preventing and removing corruption. For that reason national consensus and restoration of democracy is needed without making any delay.[17]
2. Independent and strong judiciary is the most effective safeguard against corruption. Independent judiciary is the indispensable requisite of a free society under rule of law.[18]
3. Sometimes the National Human Rights Commission can play a role on the work of government officials with its watch dog mechanism. But for the last one decade, the bill relating to establishing NHRC has been pending with the hand of government high ups.[19]
4. Departmental accountability of the government servant must be ensured.Corruption technology should be quickly introduced in public administration to assist in efforts for ensuring transparency and accountability and reduce red-tapism. Coordination between different departments at the district level should be strengthened. Attendance at the district coordination meetings should be made compulsory for all departmental heads. The local governments should be made stronger and the power of the administration should be effectively decentralized.[20]
5. Effective parliament can be the vital mechanism against corruption. A special parliamentary standing committee on corruption can be formed headed by an MP from the opposition so that parliamentary control can be effectively ensured against the corruption activities of government officials.
2.6 Global Programme Against Corruption:
The Global Programme contributes through programmes and projects that identify, disseminate and apply good practices in preventing and controlling corruption and has produced multiple technical and policy guides, including the Anti-Corruption
The United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) creates the opportunity to develop a global language about corruption and a coherent implementation strategy. A multitude of international anti-corruption agreements exist, however their implementation has been uneven and only moderately successful. The UNCAC gives the global community the opportunity to address both of these weaknesses and begin establishing an effective set of benchmarks for effective anti-corruption strategies. The Global Programme against Corruption (GPAC) is a catalyst and a resource to help countries effectively implement the provision of the UN Convention against Corruption.
There are a rapidly growing number of countries that have become parties to the Convention. The primary goal of the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU)/Global Programme against Corruption (GPAC) is to provide practical assistance and build technical capacity to implement the UNCAC and efforts will concentrate on supporting Member States in the development of anti-corruption policies and institutions. This will include the establishment of preventive anti-corruption frameworks.[21]
A useful conclusion is that corruption is a symptom of deep-seated and fundamental economic, political and institutional weaknesses and shortcomings in a country. To be effective, measures against corruption must therefore address these underlying causes and not the symptoms. Emphasis must thus be placed on preventing corruption by tackling the root causes that give rise to it through undertaking economic, political and institutional reforms. Anti-corruption enforcement measures such as oversight bodies, a strengthened police force and more efficient law courts will not be effective in the absence of a serious effort to address the fundamental causes. Another observation that may be useful to bear in mind is that corruption is most prevalent where there are other forms of institutional weaknesses, such as political instability, bureaucratic red tape, and weak legislative and judicial systems. The important point is that corruption and such institutional weaknesses are linked together and that they feed upon each other. For example, red tape makes corruption possible and corrupt officials may increase the extent of red tape so that they can get more bribes. So, getting rid of corruption helps a country to overcome other institutional weaknesses, just as reducing other institutional weaknesses helps to curb corruption. The main conclusion to be drawn is that undertaking reforms (both economic and political) by reducing institutional weaknesses offers the best hope to overcome corruption. Corruption will not disappear because of reforms. But reforms will bring it under control and minimize its adverse consequences so that the country can proceed with its efforts to become a modern, developed nation with a good chance of attaining that goal.
Chapter – Three
Essentials of Good Governance
The concept of “good governance” often emerges as a model to compare ineffective economies or political bodies with viable economies and political bodies. Because the most “successful” governments in the contemporary world are liberal democratic states concentrated in Europe and the Americas, those countries’ institutions often set the standards by which to compare other states’ institutions Because the term good governance can be focused on any one form of governance, aid organizations and the authorities of developed countries often will focus the meaning of good governance to a set of requirement that conform to the organizations agenda, making “good governance” imply many different things in many different contexts.
3.1 Definition of Good Governance:
The good governance is the essential element for state. If those things are exist that time that state will be developed.
According to former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. “Good governance is perhaps the single most important factor in eradicating poverty and promoting development.”
Recently the terms “governance” and “good governance” are being increasingly used in development literature. Bad governance is being increasingly regarded as one of the root causes of all evil within our societies. Major donors and international financial institutions are increasingly basing their aid and loans on the condition that reforms that ensure “good governance” are undertaken.
According to Wikipedia prescribes that, Good governance is an indeterminate term used in development literature to describe how public institutions conduct public affairs and manage public resources in order to guarantee the realization of human rights. Governance describes “the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented (or not implemented)”. The term governance can apply to corporate, international, national, local governance or to the interactions between other sectors of society.[22]
The World Leaders at the 2005 World Summit concluded that good governance is integral to economic growth, the eradication of poverty and hunger, and sustainable development. The views of all oppressed groups, including women, youth and the poor, must be heard and considered by governing bodies because they will be the ones most negatively affected if good governance is not achieved.
For good governance to exist in both theory and practice, citizens must be empowered to participate in meaningful ways in decision-making processes. They have a right to information and to access. Although widespread accessibility remains a barrier for many countries, one of those ways is through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) applications such as the Internet. E-governance has emerged as a viable means to address development issues and challenges because citizens find empowerment through access to information. For more on this subject, please see our page on Understanding ICT for Development.[23]
3.2 Principles of Good Governance:
Defining the principles of good governance is difficult and controversial. The United Nations Development Program (UNDP- “Governance and Sustainable Human Development, 1977) 15 has identified five basic principles of good governance, which are as follows:
1. Legitimacy and Voice;
Participation – all men and women should have a voice in decision-making, either directly or through legitimate intermediate institutions that represent their intention. Such broad participation is built on freedom of association and speech, as well as capacities to participate constructively.
Consensus orientation – good governance mediates differing interests to reach a broad consensus on what is in the best interest of the group and, where possible, on policies and procedures.
2. Direction;
Strategic vision – leaders and the public have a broad and long-term perspective on good governance and human development, along with a sense of what is needed for such development. There is also an understanding of the historical, cultural and social complexities in which that perspective is grounded.
3. Performance;
Responsiveness – institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders.
Effectiveness and efficiency – processes and institutions produce results that meet needs while making the best use of resources.
4. Accountability;
Accountability – decision-makers in government, the private sector and civil society organizations are accountable to the public, as well as to institutional stakeholders. This accountability differs depending on the organizations and whether the decision is internal or external.
Transparency – transparency is built on the free flow of information. Processes, institutions and information are directly accessible to those concerned with them, and enough information is provided to understand and monitor them.
5. Fairness;
Equity – all men and women have opportunities to improve or maintain their wellbeing.
Rule of Law – legal frameworks should be fair and enforced impartially, particularly the laws on human rights.[24]
3.3 The Elements of Good Governance:
It is not an easy task to determine the components of “good governance”. It has been determined in various ways. Some of the Criteria are given below:
(1) According to World Bank, legitimacy, accountability, transparency, lack of corruption, competence and efficiency, decentralization, sustainability, equity, empowerment and participation are some of the criteria considered desirable for evaluating the quality of governance.
(2) According to the Commission on Global Governance4 “informal arrangements that people and institutions either have agreed to or perceive to be in their interest”, is governance.
(3) According to Huq, et alhuman governance’’ consists of three components, namely; good economic governance, good civic governance and good political governance.
(4) Another important aspect of governance relates to the role of the state.
(5) Primacy of low, low and order are the vital components of governance.
(6) Parliamentary democracy and its effectiveness, poverty alleviation, responsible media, women empowerment, concept of an ethical of an ethical society, independence of judiciary, a watchful society are some important elements of good governance.[25]
Development depends upon the entire governance situation of a country and governance depends upon the existence of some factors. For better understanding some of these factors are discussed below in brief:
1. Legitimacy and Rule of Law
Basically legitimacy is the principle of rule of low. When the authority fails to treat the common people impartially, it generally loses legitimacy. Because if the government fails to uphold rule of low, human rights would be violated. So for ensuring better governance, government has to prove its legitimacy through maintaining the rule of law.[26]
2. Accountability
Accountability is the vital component of good governance. For good governance, accountability must be ensured. Public officers, both elected leaders as well as civil servants should have accountability. They are to discharge various functions viz., allocate public funds; provide safety and security of the citizens etc. Accountability reduces corruption and assures citizens that their government’s actions are guided by the needs f society. Civil servant’s accountability shall be ensured through the control and supervision by elected functionaries. The elected officials can be accountable by free and fair election, monitoring by the opposition political parties, the civil society, parliamentary committee, public inquiry commission, public opinion etc.[27]
3. Transparency
The functions of the government should be transparent. Transparency means that the continuos sharing of information, sharing of information, decision making and implementation should be open. It is not sufficient that information should simply be made available. It must also be reliable and presented in useful and understandable ways in order to facilitate accountability. Information should be accessible in that every citizen can participate in the debates. Such information helps to ensure a level playing field and encourages the effective participate of all social groups and partnership between different sectors. Transparency makes the institutions and organizations more responsible.[28]
4. Decentralisation
Decentralisation of Administration is another important element of good governance. Delegation of power may ensure good governance. Delegation includes the transfer of functions to regional or functional development authorities, parastatal organization or special project implementation units on the understanding that they would operate relatively free of central government regulations concerning personnel recruitment, contracting, budgeting, procurement and other matters and they would act as agents for the state in performing prescribed functions, with ultimate responsibility for them remaining with the central government. Decentralisation provides the following benefits,
(i) It ensures better results in development programmes and projects;
(ii) It increases people’s participation;
(iii) It ensures efficient delivery of services;
(iv) It helps to mobilize local resources;
(v) It engenders lower level democracy;
(vi) It enhances coordination;
(vii) It promotes equity;
(viii) It increases the flow of information bottom up;
(ix) It enhances the responsiveness of the central government to citizen demands and interests;
(x) It maintains political stability and
(xi) It provides education and training in political leadership.
In our country, local government bodies have been setup from the concept of Decentralisation. But lack of powers and strict control over local government bodies make the Decentralisation weak. By strengthening the local government bodies, we can get the above benefits.[29]
5. Lack of Corruption
Corruption is one of the main barriers for development in our country. It is also an impediment to ensure good governance. Corruption may be defined as abuse of public power for private gain. It is not confined to bribery, but can assume a number of other forms such as nepotism, patronage, pillaging of organizational assets, distortion of organizational expenditure, cronyism etc. The invisible amount of money which goes to corrupt pockets, would have made our country developed. It is found from a statistics that in the last seven years (1994-2001), around 15,000 (fifteen thousand) core taka has been misappropriated by 24 ministries and government agencies.[30]
6. Empowerment and Participation
Good governance depends on the existence of participatory process. The effective participation of the people of all classes can ensure national development. About half of our people are women. Besides, we have some ethnic or indigenous people. Some of the sasses in the society including women are far away from the participation in national development. The entire development depends upon the proper empowerment and the backward sections will be deprived of getting development benefit if they are not properly empowered. Empowerment means the organized efforts to increase control over resources and regulative institutions in given social situation on the part of group or movements for those hitherto excluded form such control. Participation is closely related with the concept of equality. Equality means all persons (men, women, poor or rich) have equal rights to improve and to maintain their wellbeing. Participation is of different types, viz., political participation, participation as to government service, participation of decision-making etc.[31]
7. Law and Order
Law and order is becoming pivotal not only to good governance but also to state management. Law and order is the precondition of social justice and the pre-requisite for development. In the recent time, detraction of low and order is one of the barriers on the way to development. Rape, killing, acid throwing, kidnapping, snatching etc. are the matters of daily life. Many factors are responsible for worsening of the law and order situation the terrorist activities are now spreading fast of all over the country. All the post governments reportedly expressed their concerns over terrorism. We can answer why as non-democratic societies with poor economies are breeding centers for growths of terrorism. Non-observance of democratic norms by the political practical parties makes their leaders dependent on henchman for supporting their interests within and outside the party leadership. In the present context, nobody is free from danger. Journalists, teachers, businessmen, service holders, all are passing their days under the continues threat of terrors. Because of terrorism, maximum development activities including foreign aided development programmes have been stopped. So it urgent to improve law and order situation for accelerating the growth of development.[32]
3.4 The Necessities of Good Governance:
It was once the case that development discourse revolved around the narrow confines of macro-economic indicators – economic growth. Other constitutive and holistic dimensions were not prominent. Even the limited discourse on governance revolved around the efficiency of the bureaucrats within the public realm, almost in a self contained manner. The state centric modality, precluded the growth and expansion of the civil society, and hence the political space was limited.
Good governance is grounded on certain predicates, which are, that: citizens and their governments do enter into a compact in which the citizens of any polity expect returns from their rulers for the enormous power vested in the government. They expect the government to respond to their material and non-material needs through a systematic process of accountability, transparency and checks and balances. Part of this compact involves the creation of a participatory system of democratic governance, under-girded by peace and security and the rule of law and the development of institutions and institutional norms which will be capable enough to produce sound economic- macro and micro- policies and management. The expectations are that this compact will significantly lead to poverty reduction. In a way, good governance is an imperative for development. (UNECA, 2001).
The emphasis on democratic governance is recognition of its overarching importance and the principal enabler of good governance in general. Without the umbrella of democratic governance, the other subcomponents or constitutive elements of good governance will become problematic, if not unattainable. What are these other constitutive elements? They are administrative governance, which essentially looks at institutional capacities, effectiveness and accountability and economic management, and corporate governance. These constitutive elements present a more holistic or comprehensive dimensions of good governance. We shall return later to the other constitutive dimensions of the triad and explore further the dimension of political governance. The latter deals mainly with the issue of empowerment and participation of the populace, all social groups in decision making that affect their lives.
Political governance ensures that political representation is not merely symbolic, but substantive and sustainable: constitutionally guaranteed rights to open and credible competitive mechanisms for political representation, electoral laws that guarantee the rights of all social groups (gender, minorities) to fully participate and be adequately represented in all the organs and hierarchies of decision making; a decentralized political system allows for local governance and decision making and transparency of the electoral process which ensures that, citizens accept electoral outcomes. This ensures peace and stability and minimizes the likelihood of conflict. It also ensures the legitimacy and sustainability of the political framework and the state. Legitimacy is an important component of a capable state.
Since governance is also about the authoritative exercise and use of power to engender all sorts of human endeavors (economic, social and political), through state and non state institutions, the capable state becomes a central conduit in enabling the private sector and the civil society to participate fully in development. The Capable state is not possible without the other subcomponent of governance, which is administrative governance.
The importance of capable institutions necessary for the effective functioning of both state and non-state actors in improving the socio-economic and political conditions of citizens cannot be overemphasized. Institutional effectiveness and Accountability are central to good governance. The capacity of the state to become responsive to citizens demands will depend in large measure on the effectiveness of institutions. The latter takes into cognition the fact that; some aspects of poor governance may be related to weak institutional capacity. This will make it possible to identify gaps in capacity and therefore assist African leaders to initiate requisite capacity building interventions. The indices for institutional effectiveness, among others, are the following: respect for the rule of law by all the actors in the political process, independence and capacity of the judiciary, the mechanisms for self-regulation and external oversight of the activities of the executive and legislative organs, transparency, accountability of oversight bodies, mechanisms for the active participation of the civil society and the private sector in decision making, the extent and degree of de-centralized structures and decision making, gender representation in all spheres of decision making, effective service delivery mechanisms for service delivery to the poor and the capacity and independence of the legislatures in drafting and enacting relevant legislation.[33]
3.5 Towards Ensuring Good Governance:
Good governance holds the key for national development and it changes with time and expectations of the people. For good governance following should be ensured:
Administrative reforms are essential for good governance. Restructuring of entire administrative system is the need of hour. A committed, disciplined, dignified, efficient and motivated civil service is a sine qua non for good governance. The public officials are expected to be fearless, honest and impartial in the performance of their duties and responsibilities. But coming to power, the political parties are used to politicize the bureaucrats. As a result, there is no transparency and accountability in the administration. But transparency prevents corruption. So a comprehensive reform of the bureaucracy with special focus on its depoliticisation would no doubt make a significant contribution to the nations stride for building a truly democratic society and promoting good governance. It is better to mention that few years ago, a Public Administrative Reform Commission had been formed and later the Commission placed some recommendations for ensuring effective administration. But the recommendations have not yet been implemented. So, it is needed to implement the recommendation of the Public Administrative Reform Commission for ensuring transparency and accountability of the whole administration. Besides, the much talked Official Secrets Act should be repealed for ensuring bureaucratic transparency.[34]
Good governance may be ensured by strengthening the local government bodies and ensuring local governance. Participation in the decision-making is one of the vital agenda for development and it can make the governance good. We need democratic institutions at the grass root level is that the concerned people can participate in local governance. Strong local government can uphold the democratic process and can play vital role to alleviate poverty. Democracy will not be consolidated if local governments are not effective.[35]
We need comprehensive as well as independent judiciary for ensuring rule of law. Independence of judiciary is the precondition of rule of law. There is no liberty, if the judicial power is not separated from the legislative and executive.Rule of law requires that the Government should be subject to the law, rather than the law being subject to the governmentRule of law ensuresindividuals civiland political rights. Rule of law requires the fulfillment of certain economic, social and cultural rights. It also requires the power of judicial over administrative action. Judicial review comprises the power of a court to hold unconstitutional and unenforceable any law or order based upon such law or any other actions by a public authority which is inconsistent or in conflict with the basic law of the land.The deject of judicial review is to ensure that the authority does not abuse its power and the individual receives just and fair treatment and not to ensure that the authority reaches a conclusion which is correct in the eye of law. Judicial review aims to protect citizens from abuse or misuse of power by any branch of the state.[36]
Effective Parliament is the sine qua non of good governance. We have passed the period of twelve years of parliamentary democracy. The common citizens have haven their verdict through elections. But from the very beginning, the accountability of both the ruling and opposition parties has not been ensured. Though there are enough scopes to ensure government’s accountability in the parliament, continuous absence of the opposition have made the parliament ineffective. Parliament is the centre from where the citizens can be informed. But due to lack of effective parliamentary deliberation, people are remaining ignorant.[37]
Appointment of Ombudsman is the much-talked agenda for the last two decades as the Ombudsman acts as the defender of the citizen’s rights. In a modern state, the administrative authority has to perform multifarious activities. In this connection, they exercise vast powers. Sometimes, these powers tend to become corrupt and people’s rights are violated. For protecting the people from such mal-administration, the institute of ‘Ombudsman’ is a necessity. Ombudsman is the “watchdog” of the administration and the protector of the ‘little man’ against arbitrary administrative discretion by investigating complaints of individuals concerning grievance against a government agency. The Office of the Ombudsman could play important role for ensuring good governance and rule of law.[38]
Establishment of Independent Human Rights Commission is a dire need to protect and to promote human rights in the domestic level. Sustainable development is possible, when the development is by way of protecting and promoting human rights.[39]
The contribution of the civil society in the field of socio-economic development is undeniable. The civil society has pivotal role in establishing good governance. The members of the civil society give their intellectual directions so that the nation can find the path of development. They can play an effective role to uphold democracy. They have moral responsibility to the nation.[40]
Perfect role of media can establish good governance. As government’s electronic media has failed to meet the people’s demands, some non-government electronic media are meeting such demand. Pen if the journalist may be the sword against terrorism and corruption. Their investigative report can make the administration transparent and accountable. So, all of the media should have to take responsibility for establishing good governance.
Independent anti-corruption body is the pre-requisite for establishing good governance. The Bureau of Anti-Corruption cannot play proper role in this regard because this department works under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister’s office and naturally this departments does not take action against the same political government. So for the better governance and ensuring transparency and accountability, independent Anti-Corruption department should be established soon.[41]
From the above discussion it should be clear that good governance is an ideal which is difficult to achieve in its totality. Very few countries and societies have come close to achieving good governance in its totality. However, to ensure good governance, actions must be taken to work towards this ideal with the aim of making it a reality.
Chapter-Four
History and Evolution of Human Rights
Human Rights as contained in the International Bill of Human Rights, enjoying the status of International Law is the International and national standard of all aspect of the human behaviour. It is the Charter of Rights for mankind and so any violation of human right anywhere is the concern of everybody everywhere. The view has been confirmed by the recent world conference on Human Rights in the Vienna Declaration 1993, where it has been said that the human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated. When enacted into law of any country the human rights become fundamental rights of the citizen of the country.
4.1 Definition and Concept of Human rights:
Broadly speaking human rights may be regarded as those fundamental and inalienable rights which are essential for life as human being. Human rights are the rights which are possessed by every human being, irrespective of his or her nationality, race, religion, sex, etc, simply because he or she is a human being. Human rights are those rights which are inherent in our nature and without which we can not live as human beings. Human rights and fundamental freedoms allow us to fully develop and use our human qualities, our intelligence, our talents, and our conscience and to satisfy our physical, spiritual and other needs. They are based on mankind’s increasing demand for a life on which the inherent dignity and worth of each human being will receive respect and protection.[42] As human being every man or woman has some basic rights which are required to exploit their physical and mental faculties. These rights are indispensable and inviolable, no one is supposed to take away these rights from any individual. These rights are so basic and fundamental that any man or woman gets these tights from his/her birth and in every stage of life they are required for meaningful existence of human life.[43]
Human rights refer to the “basic rights and freedoms to which all humans are entitled.” examples of rights and freedoms which have come to be commonly thought of as human rights include civil and political rights, such as the right to life and liberty, freedom of expression, and equality before the law; and economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to participate in culture, the right to food, the right to work, and the right to education.
According to article 1 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR),
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”[44]
Human Rights and fundamental freedoms allow us to fully develop and human qualities, our intelligence, our talents and our conscience and to satisfy our spiritual and other needs. They are based on mankind’s increasing demand for a life in which inherent dignity and worth of each human being will receive respect and protection. What we call human rights are contained, as said earlier, in the International Bill of Human Rights which has three distinct but co-ordinate part