The '2024 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers' published on March 29 identified barriers to government procurement, intellectual property protection, digital trade, investment and labour rights in Bangladesh. According to the NTE report published by United States Trade Representative Catherine Tai, the United States faces several obstacles in doing business with Bangladesh. Bangladesh faces obstacles in the export of goods and services, foreign direct investment and e-commerce. NTE reports have been published regularly since 1985. This year's NTE report highlights significant foreign trade barriers in 59 markets. According to the report, corruption is a widespread and chronic problem in Bangladesh. And the implementation of anti-corruption laws is not enough. It also said that bribery and extortion are common in commercial transactions despite bribery transactions and gifts being illegal. US companies have also complained that they are forced to pay bribes to get licenses.  The report also mentions that the government has tried to weaken the anti-corruption rules in procurement. According to the report, US companies have complained that it takes a long time to get licenses and tenders approved because government officials in Bangladesh demand bribes.    

President Mohammed Shahabuddin today (Jan 30) called upon the political parties to carry out non-violent constructive programmes and urged all concerned to take stern actions against corruption. The President also said that due to continuous democracy in the last decade and a half, the country is moving fast on the path of improvement and progress. We have to make more progress to build the Sonar Bangla of Bangabandhu's dream. Tough challenges to face in the future. That is why we must always be careful. He delivered the speech in the first session of the 12th National Parliament on Tuesday (January 30) afternoon. He said, "Uncertainty is increasing in the global economy due to geopolitical instability. If the global economic crisis occurs, it will also affect us. For this we must have the necessary preparation." However, Awami League formed the government for the fourth consecutive term after getting an absolute majority in the 12th national parliamentary elections. Sheikh Hasina took charge as the prime minister for the fourth time in a row and overall for the fifth time. At the same time, she was also elected as the leader of the parliament.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday (Jan 15) issued a directive to ensure transparency and accountability in all areas, including public procurement, saying any kind of corruption and irregularity will not be tolerated. "Alongside ensuring transparency and accountability, special attention has to be given to government revenue, expenditure and procurement. I will not tolerate any kind of corruption-irregularity here," she said. The premier gave this directive while delivering the introductory speech of the maiden cabinet meeting of the new government formed after the 12th parliamentary election. Awami League won the polls held on January 7 with landslide victory. Besides, Sheikh Hasina became Prime Minister for the historic fifth time as well as her consecutive fourth term after her party won the national election. Mentioning that corruption is not good for the country, she said: "We will utilize whatever resources we have appropriately, and we will move ahead maintaining financial discipline." Sheikh Hasina went on: "Our resources are limited but the population is large. We have to do the welfare of the people with our limited resources." Directing the authorities concerned to ensure transparency in the social security sector, the head of the government said that attention should also be given to make sure that eligible people get the old- age allowance and social security allowance. She also asked the concerned authorities to take measures for controlling drug abuse. She asked the concerned authorities to put the price manipulators under strict supervision. In this connection, Sheikh Hasina said that Ramadan is coming and a specific number of companies import food products. She added: "They always want to play a game here. In that case we have to make our own preparations." The premier said prices of products -- that are needed most during the Ramadan -- should be kept under tolerable range and their availability should be ensured in the market through an uninterrupted supply chain. She went on "appropriate measures should be taken in this regard." Sheikh Hasina, also the president of ruling Awami League, put emphasis on the implementation of the election pledges. She asked to diversify the export items and search for new markets. Regarding inflation, the Prime Minister said although the prices of various products are high but there is no shortage of those. She laid emphasis on keeping the inflation less than the growth as only then the common people of Bangladesh will get its benefits. Sheikh Hasina said that the government since 2009 has been able to bring down inflation and food inflation, which was around 12%, to 9%. "All others fell to 8%. But we have to reduce it further," she added.

The largest corruption scandal in Southeast Asia's history has shaken Vietnam's anti-graft drive. Experts have warned that the country's economic stability may be at stake. Vietnam has been rocked by its largest corruption scandal to date after authorities last month arrested a prominent real estate developer over allegedly embezzling nearly €11.4 billion ($12.4 billion), the equivalent of more than 3% of the country's GDP. In 2016, Vietnam's governing Communist Party began conducting a sweeping anti-corruption campaign. Since then, it has brought down a national president and senior government ministers, but the scale of the alleged graft involved in the latest scandal it uncovered raised questions about the true state of Vietnam's banking and property sectors. The biggest corruption scandal in Southeast Asian history On November 17, the Ministry of Public Security alleged that Truong My Lan, the chairperson of real estate developer Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group, had embezzled 304 trillion dong (€11.4 billion) from Saigon Commercial Bank, of which she was a majority stakeholder, over several years. According to the ministry's statements, My Lan, who was first arrested last year, operated a vast network of more than 1,000 domestic and foreign subsidiaries as well as further shell companies that took out more than €40 billion in loans from the Saigon Commercial Bank, appropriating about a third of it through "ghost companies" she and her family and associates created. In mid-November, the Ministry of Public Security also recommended the prosecution of a further 85 people, including 24 government officials and associates of Van Thinh Phat Holdings Group and Saigon Commercial Bank. Days later, the Internal Affairs Commission of the Communist Party's Central Committee recommended opening investigations into another 23 state officials, including 12 from the State Bank of Vietnam, the country's central bank. It is arguably the largest corruption scandal in recent Southeast Asian history. By comparison, the well-documented 1MDB scandal in Malaysia in the 2010s, which led to Malaysia's dominant party losing power for the first time ever, involved the theft of €4.1 billion from the country's sovereign wealth fund.    Hanoi's anti-corruption campaign The Communist Party of Vietnam embarked on its "blazing furnace" anti-graft campaign when Nguyen Phu Trong, the party's general secretary, defeated rival Nguyen Tan Dung — Dung was prime minister at the time and seen by many as allowing corruption to thrive. The anti-corruption campaign has resulted in hundreds, if not thousands of party and government officials being dismissed in recent years. In January, Nguyen Xuan Phuc resigned as state president and two deputy prime ministers were sacked over alleged corruption in the government procurement of coronavirus testing kits and the repatriation of Vietnamese nationals during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Speaking this month, after the revelations about the latest scandal, Prime Minister Trong said Communist authorities, "need to conduct the anti-corruption fight faster and in a more efficient manner." He added, "We won't stop here but will continue for the long term." Officials under the graft spotlight Tuong Vu, a political science professor at the University of Oregon in the US, said Prime Minister Trong could now have his sights set on some more big-name targets, including the former party boss of Ho Chi Minh City, Le Thanh Hai, who is known as "the most corrupt official in Vietnam." Hai was the political boss of the southern business hub for decades, and although he was given a wrap on the knuckles in 2020, when the corruption-busters found his committee had engaged in improprieties, he has so far avoided any real punishment for his alleged wrongdoings. "It is possible that Hai is next. He's also known to be close to former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, who may still be a target," said Tuong Vu, referring to the political heavyweight whom Trong defeated in 2016.  Indeed, it had been suggested by analysts that Hai and Dung may have been the two richest people in Vietnam at some point in the 2010s thanks to their alleged oversight of vast graft networks in southern Vietnam.  "There is no doubt that more major scandals and arrests are forthcoming," said Michael Tatarski, a journalist living in Ho Chi Minh City who writes about Vietnamese politics in his Vietnam Weekly blog. "A significant investigation into sand mining is underway," and it appears police are looking closely at the renewable energy sector and Vietnam Electricity, the country's largest power company, he added. However, there are concerns that the scale of graft now being uncovered is denting economic stability. Private sector feels the heat When a number of private sector companies were hit with corruption allegations last year, it was suggested the anti-graft campaign was starting to affect business confidence. Reports leaked in the media claimed local government officials and civil servants were refusing to sign off on much-needed infrastructure investment deals for fear they would later be accused of corruption if the development projects didn't go according to plan. Nguyen Khac Giang, a visiting fellow at the Vietnam Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, pointed out that this is not the first significant investigation into a private company, but it is by far the largest. He says that in 2022, Trinh Van Quyet, chairman of property and leisure company FLC Group and its subsidiary Bamboo Airlines, was arrested on charges of stock market manipulation; while months later, Do Anh Dung, chairman of the Tan Hoang Minh property development group, was detained on suspicion of fraudulent appropriation of assets. Tran Qui Thanh, chairman of Tan Hiep Phat Group, the country's largest private-sector beverage producer, was arrested in April over alleged misappropriation of assets. Given what has transpired so far, the latest corruption scandal "might not further deteriorate business confidence in Vietnam, nor instill fear of being investigated," Giang said. Indeed, other sources have made similar arguments, saying business confidence was more shaken by the first investigations into private sector corruption and that the business community in Vietnam has now become somewhat accustomed to the idea that the Communist Party might be staring over its shoulder. 'Total regulatory failure' Among the many allegations against Truong My Lan and her associates were accusations that they had bribed investigators for years to get them to overlook Saigon Commercial Bank's financial discrepancies. This includes bribes reportedly paid to the then-chief of the State Bank of Vietnam's Inspectorate and Supervision Department. "This was a total regulatory failure," said Zachary Abuza, a professor of national security strategy at the US National War College in Washington, who added that it should raise questions about the business practices of other banks, too. "If Lan could bribe regulators with $5.2 million to overlook non-performing loans and other criminal behavior at [the Saigon Commercial Bank], why not other banks?" Abuza queried. The latest corruption scandal also raises questions about political stability. Trong, the party chief, has torn up informal agreements on term limits and retirement ages that the Communist Party agreed to in the 1990s. Trong, 79, is now in his third term in office and seemingly cannot step down as he's unable to find a trusted successor — the reason why he took on a third term in 2021, most pundits say. It remains unclear if he will try to run for a fourth term at the next National Congress in early 2026.  "Anti-corruption has evolved from a means, to an end in itself. Combating corruption is seen as a way to uphold the party's legitimacy," said Giang. "This is the new normal of Vietnamese politics."

FBI agents seized New York mayor Eric Adams' phones and other devices, his campaign lawyer said on Friday. Authorities are investigating whether Adams' 2021 campaign conspired with the Turkish government to receive donations from foreign sources. The seizure comes four days after federal agents searched the Brooklyn home of Adams' top fundraiser, Brianna Suggs. What did Adams and his lawyer say? "On Monday night, the FBI approached the mayor after an event. The Mayor immediately complied with the FBI's request and provided them with electronic devices," Adams' attorney, Boyd Johnson said. "The mayor has not been accused of any wrongdoing and continues to cooperate with the investigation." Johnson said that they had "discovered that an individual had recently acted improperly." "After learning of the federal investigation, it was discovered that an individual had recently acted improperly. In the spirit of transparency and cooperation, this behavior was immediately and proactively reported to investigators," he said. New York mayor Eric AdamsNew York mayor Eric Adams Adams says his team will cooperate with law enforcement amid the probeImage: Mayoral Photography Office/Ed Reed/AP/picture alliance In a statement on Friday, Adams said he had "nothing to hide." "As a former member of law enforcement, I expect all members of my staff to follow the law and fully cooperate with any sort of investigation — and I will continue to do exactly that," he said. Earlier this week, Adams said that he was not aware of any wrongdoing by members of his campaign team. What is the investigation into New York's mayor? The focus of the investigation has not been publicly disclosed by prosecutors. The New York Times reported that it had acquired an arrest warrant that indicated authorities were examining whether the Adams campaign engaged in a scheme to receive foreign donations listed under false contributors. The paper said that the FBI was searching for evidence of conspiracy between the Adams campaign, the Turkish government and a Brooklyn-based developer whose owners are Turkish.

Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Saturday said that India's zero-tolerance approach for corruption also guides its approach towards international cooperation for combating corruption.  While addressing the inaugural session of the G20 anti-graft ministerial meeting in Kolkata, the union minister said, "G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial meeting is an opportunity for all of us to demonstrate the collective and strong political will to lead the global fight against corruption.” “India’s zero-tolerance approach to corruption also guides our approach towards international cooperation in combating corruption," he said. The union minister also recalled the 9-point agenda on fugitive economic offenders presented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to G20 in 2018.  "It called for strong and active cooperation across G20 countries in legal processes and mechanisms to deny safe haven to all fugitive economic offenders, effective implementation of international commitments, establishment of international cooperation for timely and comprehensive exchange of information and formulation of a standard definition of fugitive economic offenders, development of a set of commonly agreed and standardised procedures for dealing with fugitive economic offenders by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), setting up of a common platform for sharing experiences and best practices and initiation of work on locating properties of economic for its recovery." Lauding the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group for publishing an important G20 action paper on International Cooperation dealing with Economic Crime, Offenders and Recovery of Stolen Assets in 2020, Singh said, it underscored the commitment of G20 countries to make efforts towards the denial of safe havens and facilitate the return of such fugitives and recovery of stolen assets. “Taking forward the momentum, G20 ACWG under India’s Presidency has been successful in building consensus on important issues related to strengthening law enforcement cooperation, information sharing and asset recovery mechanisms. We, as the G20 need to be bold in our ambition and work together to address the lacunes in international cooperation to combat corruption. I am sure that G20 members will take concrete steps to implement these principles to enhance the effectiveness of extradition mechanisms, and to facilitate better tracking of cross-border financial flows which will deter fugitive economic offenders,” he said. Earlier today Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the G20 Anti-Corruption Ministerial meeting in Kolkata virtually. "India has a strict policy of zero tolerance against corruption," PM Modi said while underlining that India is leveraging technology and e-governance to create a transparent and accountable ecosystem.  PM Modi further referred to the writings of Tagore and cautioned against greed as it prevents us from realizing the truth. He also touched upon the ancient Indian Upanishads that strive for ‘Ma Gridha,’ which translates to ‘let there be no greed’. PM Modi further underlined that the highest impact of corruption is borne by the poor and the marginalized.  Referring to Kautilya in the Arthashastra, Modi said that it is the government's duty to enhance the State's resources to maximize the welfare of its people. "The need to combat corruption to achieve this goal and said that it is the sacred duty of the government towards its people," he said.

Pakistan's former prime minister Imran Khan has been arrested after a trial court on Saturday sentenced him to three years in prison for illegally selling state gifts, also known as the Toshakhana corruption case, and disqualified him from politics for five years.  Earlier Saturday, a court convicted him in an asset concealment case, handing down a prison sentence that could see him barred from politics. The Islamabad court issued the arrest warrant after convicting Khan, with police in Lahore moving quickly to take him from his home to the Pakistani capital. Pakistani court convicts former Prime Minister Imran Khan, potentially barring him from politics It’s a fresh blow to Khan’s bid to return to power. Since his ouster from power in a no-confidence vote in the parliament in April 2022, Khan has been slapped with more than 150 legal cases, including several on charges of corruption, terrorism and inciting people to violence over deadly protests in May that saw his followers attack government and military property across the country.

Eight Sialkot police officers and employees have been sacked in Pakistan over their involvement in murder and corruption cases and absence from government duty, Dawn reported. According to the department, DPOHasan Iqbal took action against 135 officials after complaints of people and departmental inquiries. The department forcibly retired ASI Ijaz Ahmed for receiving a bribe from a person and ASI Murtaza Ghamman over their involvement in a murder case. Constable Muhammad Rashid has been dismissed for his involvement in a murder case in Shakargarh. Meanwhile, Azmat Ali was dismissed for his involvement in the Satrah police station murder case, as per the Dawn report. Furthermore, constables Zeeshan Ahmed, Shiraz Ahmed and Adeel Ashraf and police van driver Yasin were sacked for continuous absence from government duty. The department ordered the confiscation of services of 85 police and traffic police officers and employees for their negligence in duty. DPOHasan Iqbal directed 43 police officers and employees to continue their work and warned them regarding departmental disqualification, as per the Dawn report. Meanwhile, the Anti-Violent Crime Cell (AVCC) police, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies, raided Shah Latif Town police station and recovered two youngsters who were abducted for ransom by Karachi Police, The News International reported. The two kidnapped youths - Asad and Arman were abducted from Zakaria Goth for a ransom of Rs 50 lakh, but a deal was settled for Rs 10 lakh. During the raid, the AVCC police arrested four suspects, including two policemen, as per the news report. A case has been lodged against them while the search for another suspect, who happens to be the incharge of a special party of Malir Division police, is being conducted. SHO Shah Latif denied his involvement in the kidnapping of the two youths, as per The News International report. However, he has been suspended and the District Malir SSP has started an inquiry to find how the abducted youths were brought and kept at the Shah Latif police station. "I have no link with the kidnapping," the suspended Shah Latif SHO, Malik Mazhar Iqbal Awan, said as he spoke to The News. He further said, "Those who were involved in the kidnapping have been arrested and a case against them registered."

Malaysia's former premier Muhyiddin Yassin faces up to 20 years in prison for allegedly accepting bribes during the early stages of the pandemic. He has denied all charges and was released on bail. Former Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin was charged with accepting bribes and money laundering on Friday, making him the country's second leader to be indicted for corruption after leaving office. Muhyiddin, who was prime minister for 17 months between 2020 and 2021, pleaded not guilty and claimed the charges were politically motivated. What is Muhyiddin accused of? Muhyiddin has been accused of accepting bribes from companies in exchange for granting them contracts through Malaysia's pandemic recovery fund. Prosecutors allege these bribes totaled 232.5 million ringgit ($51.4 million, €48.5 million) for Muhyiddin's center-right, Malay-dominated political party Bersatu. Muhyiddin was also charged with money laundering relating to 195 million ringgit that was deposited into party coffers. He faces up to 20 years in jail and substantial fines if found guilty. Tackling corruption in Malaysia Muhyiddin rose up party ranks under former Prime Minister Najib Razak, who is himself serving a 12-year jail term for corruption over the plunder of state investment firm 1MDB. He fell out with Najib in 2015, when he was sacked after criticizing the government over the 1MDB scandal. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who formed a multi-ethnic, center-left coalition in late 2022, has pledged to tackle corruption in the Southeast Asian nation.

Suu Kyi has been found guilty of every charge so far in the proceedings and sentenced to a total of 33 years in jail. The charges range from corruption and violating the official secrets act. A Myanmar junta court convicted Aung San Suu Kyi on further five corruption charges, adding seven more years to her prison sentence, reports said. The court session in army-ruled Myanmar was held behind closed doors and a gag order prevented lawyers from discussing the trial.  Since the army overthrew Suu Kyi's elected government in February 2021, a number of charges, which critics call politically motivated, have resulted in her being sentenced to a total of 33 years in jail. What are the charges against Suu Kyi? The 77-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been found guilty of every charge brought against her by the junta, including corruption, possessing walkie-talkies, defying COVID-19 restrictions and violating the official secrets act. She can appeal the latest verdict. In September, Suu Kyi and former-President Win Myint were convicted of trying to influence Myanmar's electoral commission ahead of the 2020 elections and sentenced to three years in prison. She has called the charges brought against her absurd. The junta, meanwhile, has argued that the accusations are true and that Suu Kyi has been granted a fair trial by an impartial court. Western nations have condemned the proceedings as a charade intended to intimidate the junta's main foe, as the military-proposed election next year draws close. Suu Kyi is currently being imprisoned at the Naypyitaw jail in a newly built separate facility that is close to the courthouse where her trial was conducted. Now that Suu Kyi's legal battles are likely over, at least temporarily, it possibly opens the door to her being able to have visitors, something she hasn't been able to do since being imprisoned. A statement from the military government responding to a UN request for a meeting said: ''Depending on the circumstances after the completion of the judiciary process, we will consider how to proceed.'' Between 1989 and 2010, Aung San was a political prisoner who was placed under house arrest for over 15 years. Her nonviolent struggle for democracy earned Suu Kyi the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991. Aftermath of the coup The military's 49-year rule in Myanmar come to an end after Suu Kyi led the country for five years from 2015. Her National League for Democracy won a landslide victory again in the 2020 election but was deposed in a military coup. In July 2021, the junta declared the 2020 election results invalid, claiming it had discovered 11.3 million instances of fraud. Independent observers dispute the claim. UN condemns violence The military coup last year saw mass protests and the following crackdown by Myanmar security forces left at least 2,685 civilians dead and 16,651 arrested, according to Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a non-governmental organization that tracks killings and arrests. The UN Security Council demanded last week adopted a resolution demanding an end to violence in the country and that Suu Kyi and all other inmates who had been "arbitrarily detained" be freed. This was the first UNSC resolution on the situation in Myanmar since the coup. The resolution also implores all parties to strive toward opening channels of communication and reconciliation in order to find a peaceful solution to the issue.