It could be said the world and the global order both stand at a crossroads. Countries have never been so connected as they are today because of the communications revolution that began in the 1990s. The trade linkages brought about by the most recent phase of globalization (post-1980s) have dramatically increased prosperity for some regions and countries, China being the most obvious example. But, as we are reminded on a daily basis, the environment is stressed, with species depletion and pollution being the most extreme signs of this stress. And war and civil strife are still with us.
In 2015, the United Nations launched the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 15 years after it had launched the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000. Both sets of goals attempt to benchmark progress on improvements to human well-being and to give countries and the international community a road-map to what is most important. The eight MDGs have been followed up with 17 SDGs (and many views on how effective such a strategy really is). It seemed as good a time as ever to reflect on what role I have played in this period, as well as to look forward to what will happen over the next 12 years (2030).
The Quotes
“The United Nations is designed to make possible lasting freedom and independence for all its members.”
“We must build a new world – a far better world – one in which the eternal dignity of man is respected.”
US President Harry S. Truman
“It has been said that the United Nations was not created in order to bring us to heaven, but in order to save us from hell.”
UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold at University of California Convocation, 13 May 1954.
“Today continuing poverty and distress are a deeper and more important cause of international tensions, of the conditions that can produce war, than previously.”
“The stark and inescapable fact is that today we cannot defend our society by war since total war is total destruction, and if war is used as an instrument of policy, eventually we will have total war.”
“The grim fact is that we prepare for war like precocious giants, and for peace like retarded pygmies.”
Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson
“A shift is necessary toward lifestyles less geared to environmentally-damaging consumption patterns.”
“We may get to the point where the only way of saving the world will be for industrial civilization to collapse.”
Maurice F. Strong, Former Under-Secretary General of the United Nations; Founder of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
“a super-crate, to ship a fiasco to hell”
“a sinister emblem for world power”
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright
The First Development Phase
From its founding, the United Nations was constructed around the highest human aspirations after two devastating World Wars, while also drawing fire from its critics and skeptics (American architect Frank Lloyd Wright being one of the more biting).
In January 1949, US President Harry Truman set forth a challenge for the remainder of the 20th Century. The wealthy nations must aid the poorer ones to become wealthier and more democratic: in short, to become like the United States (Starke 2001: 143). The means of accomplishing this was to be international development, and its tool, foreign aid.
Development as defined by President Truman at the start of the first international development period of the 20th century meant “nothing less than freeing a people from want, war, and tyranny, a definition it is hard to improve on even today (Starke 2000: 153).”
I grew up in the Canada of the 1970s and 1980s. For most of that time, the charismatic and internationally-minded Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau was in power. Canada’s profile and role in the United Nations and international development was high at this time, in particular in ‘peacekeeping’ missions.
Peacekeeping holds a special place for Canadians. An innovative initiative from then-Ambassador to the United Nations and later Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson in the 1950s (he received the Nobel Peace Prize for it), Canada has since had a long history with peacekeeping missions.
When I served with the Canadian Armed Forces Reserve in the early 1980s, we trained not only for war with our Cold War foe the Soviet Union, but also for peacekeeping missions. In fact I nearly went on one if not for my acceptance to study at the University of Toronto in 1985. Otherwise, I would have been off on a peacekeeping mission that year.
This phase of international development and the United Nations was framed by the Cold War and its tensions and limits: the world divided between opposing ideologies and economic systems and travel between these two worlds (Communism versus free markets and democracy) was severely restricted.
And when I graduated in 1989 from the University of Toronto, all this fell apart very quickly. The First Phase of International Development had come to a swift end.
The Second Development Phase
In 1997, I was hired to head the communications office for the UN/UNDP Mongolia mission. It was a pivotal time in international development. With the forces of ‘globalization’ unleashed (and China’s rapid rise already well underway), the UN was clearly also in a period of great change and stress. The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and its trading system (Comecon), pitched former Communist countries into severe crisis. Comecon locked-in Soviet Union satellite allied nations (including Mongolia) into a reciprocal arrangement of trade links and subsidies. The Mongolia I arrived in in 1997 was a country in turmoil. Poverty was widespread, food was difficult to get, unemployment was very high, families were falling apart under the stress of the crisis, and people’s health was poor, with very high rates of alcoholism and STDs.
This second phase of international development can be characterized by the international response to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the adjustment to the rapid changes brought about by the forces of globalization. The communications revolution was getting underway at this time as the Internet began to arrive, even in Mongolia, which had been cut-off from full relations with the Western world during the period of Communism. Mobile (cell) phones were around but still a luxury item used by wealthy businessmen or senior government officials. International aid and development was primarily in the domain of large international institutions and bilateral donors.
UN/UNDP Mongolia played an important role in helping to stabilize Mongolia during the late 1990s and to put in place the foundations for recovery from crisis (called “one of the biggest peacetime economic collapses ever” at the time). Mongolia eventually, briefly, became the fastest growing economy in the world by the second decade of the 21st century.
In the 1990s, the UN was being challenged to think and do things differently and to respond to the communications revolution. This presented a great opportunity to use the Internet and computing to communicate in new ways; to innovate and experiment. Despite its crisis, Mongolia was able to embrace these new ways and was called a “role model” for the wider United Nations by 1999 (the end of my assignment in Mongolia).
United Nations identity card circa 1997.UN head of communications for Mongolia, David South (seated front row centre), 1997-1999.As the UN’s head of communications in Mongolia (1997-1999), I founded the UNDP Mongolia Communications Office and oversaw a two-year communications programme to respond to the biggest post-WWII peacetime economic collapse. Award-winning and influential, the Office pioneered the use of the Internet in international development crisis response and was called a “role model” for the rest of the United Nations.
The Third Development Phase
With the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000, it could be argued, a third development phase had begun. The turn of the century was also during the so-called ‘Dotcom Bubble’ when investment in the Internet economy was peaking, and China was on the cusp of being accepted into the WTO (World Trade Organization) and getting set for another period of rapid expansion and growth. Both phenomenon were fueling greater trade and connectivity, especially between the countries of the so-called “global South”.
The MDGs were an attempt to guide and focus development at the international and national level by setting forth eight goals as a challenge. But, just as these internationally agreed goals were being rolled out, something was quietly happening away from New York. In China, it was clear the country had done something truly remarkable: following its own development goals and plans, China lifted the largest number of people in human history out of poverty in the shortest space of time. Those who are students of history will know how stunning an accomplishment this is: China was once a country held up as a poster child for poverty, political instability, frequent famines, human misery and global isolation. China had been the country featured in the charity and famine appeals pleading for relief and aid, just as the countries in Africa and Southeast Asia were to become.
China’s growing export power was also powering globalization. And liberalized trade was powering growth for many countries in Asia and Latin America. This increasing export trade and global connectivity was creating new wealth for many countries and growing the middle classes of the so-called ‘global South’. At the same time, the Internet revolution was being joined by the mobile technologies revolution. These communications tools were making it possible to connect with people who had been frozen out of global markets, while simultaneously creating whole new digital economies employing people and creating new wealth.
Beginning in late 2006 after working around the world in various UN missions on assignments related to the MDGs, I began an exciting new opportunity with the then-Special Unit for South-South Cooperation (SSC) (now the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation – UNOSSC).
From 9-11 December 2017, I participated in the Workshop on Innovations in Service Delivery: The Scope for South-South and Triangular Cooperation held in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Hosted by the a2i (access to information) division of the Bangladesh Prime Minister’s Office, the implementing unit for Digital Bangladesh, it was convened by the Government of Bangladesh and the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC). Senior Partner David South is third from the left on the panel. Photo: Yoko Shimura
21 Years of Creating International Change | 1997 – 2018
1999: Publish many books on Mongolia’s development, includingIn Their Own Words: Selected Writings by Journalists on Mongolia, 1997-1999 (ISBN 99929-5-043-9) and the Mongolian rock and pop book (ISBN 99929-5-018-8). Whilst working for a UK-based international development consultancy, I prepared papers for the American Foundation for AIDS Research, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the Harvard Institute for International Development (HIID), for various UN agencies including UNCTAD and UNAIDS, and coordinated the preparation of the report and launch strategy for the World Bank’s Task Force on Higher Education.
Following on from the success of the UNDP Mongolia Communications Office, I worked with the head of the UN Ukraine mission to strategically relaunch the mission web portal, incorporating the newly launched UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
2001: Begin work on the development of the award-winning GOSH Child Health Portal for the National Health Service (NHS). As part of the NHS’ Modernisation Plan, it was called a “role model” for the NHS and one of the “three most admired websites in the UK public and voluntary sectors,” and was developed and launched under heavy public and media scrutiny. Each stage of the Portal’s development would coincide with a high-profile media launch. For example, the Hospital’s 150th birthday celebrations included Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and pop star Madonna.
2002/2003: Win the Childnet Award in 2003 for the Children First website.
2004:South Africa. Work at the University of Pretoria for UN South Africa on a digital communications and marketing strategy for a youth volunteer organization.
2005: Turkmenistan and Mongolia.Work for UN missions on an MDGs communications strategy and on the country programme review.
2006:Turkmenistan. Work for UNICEF. Begin working for the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation (SSC) in New York.
Reader response experiment begins with crowd-powered news website NowPublic. Initial proposal for the development of book or magazine on innovation. Awarded grant for Cuba study tour by BSHF.
Adjust e-newsletter content based on reader responses. Begin posting content on Twitter platform.
2010: Begin development of the new global magazine Southern Innovator with the UN’s Special Unit for South-South Cooperation (SSC) and a design team in Iceland led by Solveig Rolfsdottir. The magazine was produced to the UN’s design standards, as well as abiding by the UN’s Global Compact. With production in Iceland, the magazine could be designed and laid out using 100 percent renewable energy sources.
Develop and launch the new branding for David South Consulting and its website, davidsouthconsulting.com, all designed by one of Iceland’s top graphic designers and illustrators, Solveig Rolfsdottir.
It is called “a terrific tour de force of what is interesting, cutting edge and relevant in the global mobile/ICT space…”. Launch www.southerninnovator.org website (now www.southerninnovator.com) and social media including Twitter account @SouthSouth1.
To avoid censorship and interference, Southern Innovator‘s editorial operations were based in London, UK and its design studio was based in Reykjavik, Iceland (a high-ranking country in the World Press Freedom rankings and a former top place holder in the UNDP Human Development Index). Using a women-led design studio, it developed a design vision that could communicate across borders using clear graphic design and high-quality images. For example, when it launched in 2011, infographics were rare in development publications and at the UN; now they are commonplace. It also tried to be as ‘green’ as possible. The studio was powered on 100 per cent renewable energy (in particular, geothermal energy); the hard copy of the magazine is printed on paper from renewable forests.
Called a “Beautiful, inspiring magazine from UNDP on South-South innovation.”
With 201 Development Challenges, South-South Solutions stories posted on the NowPublic platform, a total of 336,289 views by 2012 had occurred, according to the NowPublic counter.
Called “fantastic, great content and a beautiful design!” and “Always inspiring.”.
2014: Launch fifth issue of Southern Innovator Magazine at the GSSD Expo in Washington, D.C. U.S.A. The Twitter account @SouthSouth1 called “ one of the best sources out there for news and info on #solutions to #SouthSouth challenges.” Final issues of e-newsletter Development Challenges, South-South Solutions published.
The two publications proved influential on a number of fronts, being early to draw attention to the following: the rising use of mobile phones and information technology in development, the world becoming an urban place, innovative food solutions including the nascent insect food sector (now a big thing), altering perspectives on what is possible in Africa, the use of data science to innovate development, and tracking the growing number of technology hubs and the fast-growing start-up culture in the global South. The publications were cited for shaping the new strategic direction adopted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (the UN’s leading development organisation) and its first youth strategy, and the development of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As the world’s first global innovator magazine, Southern Innovator’s design had to be appropriate for a diverse audience. It has drawn praise for being both “beautiful” and “inspiring”, while its use of sharp, modern graphic design and infographics inspired others in the UN to up their game when it comes to design.
2015: Develop scale-up plan for Southern Innovator Magazine.
South-South cooperation and innovation have now become the key methodology for the UN’s delivery of its programmes and projects. In 2015, China pledged US $2 billion to “support South-South cooperation” and called for the international community to “deepen South-South and tripartite cooperation”. In development parlance, they have been “Mainstreaming South-South and Triangular Cooperation” in their plans.
The current policy vogue for innovation in developing and developed countries can trace its roots back to some of the early work done by these two publications (and which was further amplified by the annual Global South-South Development Expo (GSSD Expo), which often would feature innovators from the two publications, spreading the innovation message around the world). Both publications had set out to inspire and “champion a global 21st century innovator culture”. And they have done this, as can be seen from concrete evidence and anecdotal responses from individuals and organizations alike.
UNDP (the United Nations Development Programme) had the following to say about the UNOSSC’s senior management up to 2015 under the Directorship of United Nations Envoy for South-South Cooperation, Yiping Zhou, calling it “unsatisfactory”:
“The United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) is an independent entity created by the General Assembly in 1974, General Assembly resolution 3251(XXIX), to support cooperation among developing countries.
UNOSSC receives its mandate and policy framework from General Assembly decisions and resolutions. UNOSSC also serves as the Secretariat of the High-level Committee (HLC) on South-South Cooperation, a subsidiary body of the General Assembly.
UNOSSC is hosted by UNDP and, as is the case with similar entities, is expected to follow UNDP rules and regulations, including those pertaining to financial and HR management. UNOSSC is likewise subject to UNDP’s oversight and due diligence instruments.
The Audit makes 16 recommendations with the objective of improving UNOSSC’s effectiveness in the areas of: governance; programme and project activities; and operations.” Excerpt from Statement (5 May 2016)
The retirement in 2016 of Southern Innovator‘s Editor-in-Chief, Cosmas Gitta, meant the magazine lost its strongest advocate within the UNOSSC and thus was not included in the next budget post-audits.
The US investigations by the F.B.I. (Federal Bureau of Investigation) leading to arrests and subsequent court trials from 2015 onwards, were joined by Australian authorities in 2018. These revelations and confessions paint a picture of a high-level, multinational criminal conspiracy to launder money and pay bribes at the United Nations that also included the collusion and aid of various senior UN officials at the time. Not only do these revelations offer new context to Southern Innovator‘s attempts to gain future support from the UNOSSC, they explain why Southern Innovator faced extensive obstruction, deception and unethical and unprofessional behaviour during this time, despite the documented success of the magazine and its associated e-newsletter to reach and inspire readers, while shaping UN strategic policy on innovation (Strategic framework of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperatio, 2014-2017).
“The e-newsletter Development Challenges, South-South Solutions proved to be a timely and prescient resource on the fast-changing global South, tracking the rise of an innovator culture driven by the rapid adoption of mobile phones and information technology …
“In 2010, work began on the development of the world’s first magazine dedicated to the 21st-century innovator culture of the global South. My goal was to create a magazine that would reach across countries and cultures, meet the UN’s standards, and inspire action. Southern Innovator was the result. Mr. [David] South played a vital role in the magazine’s development from its early conception, through its various design prototypes, to its final global launch and distribution.
“Both the e-newsletter and magazine raised the profile of South-South cooperation and have been cited by readers for inspiring innovators, academics, policy makers and development practitioners in the United Nations and beyond.
“I highly recommend Mr. [David] South as a thoughtful, insightful, analytical, creative and very amicable person who has the unique ability to not only grasp complex problems but also to formulate a vision and strategy that gets things done. … ” Cosmas Gitta, Former Assistant Director, Policy and United Nations Affairs at United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) in UNDP
“I think you [David South] and the designer [Solveig Rolfsdottir] do great work and I enjoy Southern Innovator very much!” Ines Tofalo, Programme Specialist, United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC)
“We will be asking: is bribery business as usual at the UN?”, US Attorney Preet Bharara, October 2015
“If proven, today’s charges will confirm that the cancer of corruption that plagues too many local and state governments infects the United Nations as well.”, US Attorney Preet Bharara, October 2015
“Corruption at any level of government undermines the rule of law and cannot be tolerated. But corruption is especially corrosive when it occurs at an international body like the United Nations. By paying bribes to two U.N. ambassadors to advance his interest in obtaining formal support for the Macau conference center project, Ng Lap Seng tried to manipulate the functions of the United Nations. The sentence handed down today demonstrates that those who engage in corruption will pay a heavy price and serves as a reminder that no one stands above the law.”, Acting Assistant General John P. Cronan, May 2018
“It is important to send a message, to the people at the UN itself and to other institutions in this country, that perverting the decision-making or attempting to pervert the decision-making through bribes will not be tolerated.”, US District Judge Vernon Broderick, May 2018
It is a story that has it all: the gambling sin-bin of Macau, human and sex trafficking, bribery, corruption, money laundering, spies, and, if they are to be believed, naive UN officials hiding behind their laissez-passer passports who knew nothing about all of this but were happy to take the money for a five-star conference and a trip to China (and a free iPad). How the UN ended up in this quagmire leaves many puzzled and perplexed. Then there is a so-called “21st century” media service that really is a “conduit” for bribery and money laundering (and possibly fake news), and who to this day is still reporting from the United Nations.
High-Level Multi-Stakeholders Strategy Forum 25-26 August 2015, Grand Hyatt Hotel, Macau, China.
May 2018 saw the ending of one chapter in the ongoing corruption saga surrounding the executives of South-South News and their alleged bribery and money laundering conduit targeting the United Nations (UN). On 11 May 2018 Ng Lap Seng was sentenced to 4 years in prison for being the ring leader of an elaborate, multi-year, multinational scheme to bribe UN officials and launder money into the United States.
The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York at the time, Preet Bharara, released a flowchart showing how the alleged bribery scheme targeting the United Nations worked. A series of court trials followed for the various co-conspirators, including senior executives and board members for South-South News, culminating in the 27 July 2017 conviction of the alleged ring leader of the scheme, Macau casino billionaire Ng Lap Seng, on six counts “for his role in a scheme to bribe United Nations ambassadors to obtain support to build a conference center in Macau that would host, among other events, the annual United Nations Global South-South Development Expo“. He used the news service South-South News as a “conduit for bribery and money laundering” at the United Nations, according to the FBI, something admitted to by various co-conspirators in court and under oath.
Logo for New York-based, Ng Lap Seng-funded “South-South News”. The logo mimics the UN’s logo, deploying the laurel wreath used in the UN’s logo and in its centre, the world map. As disclosed by the FBI and the US Department of Justice, this was meant to deceive people into believing South-South News had an official association with the United Nations. As the FBI stated in 2015, South-South News was a “conduit” for bribery and money laundering at the United Nations. Ng Lap Seng had repeatedly tried to bribe the highest levels of the US Government in the 1990s, before successfully bribing the highest levels of the United Nations. Ng Lap Seng was on an Interpol Watch List and was called a “kingpin of the international slave prostitution trade” in a report.
“Corruption at any level of government undermines the rule of law and cannot be tolerated. But corruption is especially corrosive when it occurs at an international body like the United Nations. By paying bribes to two U.N. ambassadors to advance his interest in obtaining formal support for the Macau conference center project, Ng Lap Seng tried to manipulate the functions of the United Nations. The sentence handed down today demonstrates that those who engage in corruption will pay a heavy price and serves as a reminder that no one stands above the law.”, Acting Assistant General John P. Cronan, May 2018In March 2015 UNOSSC Director Yiping Zhou signed a cooperation agreement with the Sun Kian Ip Group of Macau to “set up a multi-partner trust fund to promote the cause of South-South Cooperation” (https://usanewsonline.com/2015/03/07/south-south-cooperation-and-chinese-sun-kian-ip-group-signs-cooperation-agreement/). In April 2015 UNOSSC Deputy Director Inyang Ebong-Harstrup met with the Chairman of the Sun Kian Ip Group, Ng Lap Seng, in Macau (https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-n-team-had-cleared-group-at-center-of-bribery-case-1444432560).
The “21st century” media service South-South News (which still exists) was founded in 2010 by Ng Lap Seng and Ambassador Francis Lorenzo with US $12 million.
Source: OFFSHORE LEAKS DATABASE by The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.
According to the FBI, Seng did this with the objective of bribing UN officials, laundering money into the United States – bringing US $4.5 million into the US in cash over a period of two years – and lobbying for the building of a new UN facility in Macau for the annual Global South-South Development Expo (GSSD Expo) – a “Geneva of Asia”. The new facility would cost US $3 billion and be built by Ng Lap Seng’s construction company.
One of the co-conspirators in the scheme was former UN General Assembly President John Ashe. He died due to a weightlifting accident a day before he had to testify in a New York court room.
“Its major industries, legalized gambling and prostitution, spawn other pursuits such as money laundering, extortion, drugs and violence. Lately it’s been in the grip of “triad wars”–with the rival crime syndicates battling for control of the rackets–that have claimed at least 24 lives in the past 14 months, and taken a sharp bite out of casual tourism. … Mr. Trie’s choice of Macau as a refuge was scarcely an accident, since it is the base of his business partner Ng Lap Seng. (Mr. Ng is also known as Mr. Wu, since the Cantonese and Mandarin dialects have different pronunciations of the ideograph for his name.) The Senate report finds that Mr. Trie and Mr. Ng collaborated in a scheme to funnel “hundreds of thousands of dollars in foreign funds” to the Democratic National Committee. Mr. Ng wired in a total of more than $1 million from accounts in Macau and Hong Kong to Trie accounts in the U.S. The report says that Mr. Trie’s “bank records and tax returns reveal that he received little or no income from sources other than Ng Lap Seng.”
“One of his associates, Ng Lap Seng of the Macau-based San Kin Yip company, has since been identified as the financier of Charlie Trie, who in turn has been indicted in US courts for his involvement in the donor scandal. Both Ng and Wo are allegedly close to local Triads as well as mainland Chinese commercial interests.”
“Cyber-security experts have unveiled one of the biggest computer hacking campaigns to date, releasing a list of 72 organisations whose networks were attacked over a five-year period. Victims include the UN and several governments.
REUTERS – Security experts have discovered the biggest series of cyber attacks to date, involving the infiltration of the networks of 72 organizations including the United Nations, governments and companies around the world. …
In the case of the United Nations, the hackers broke into the computer system of its secretariat in Geneva in 2008, hid there for nearly two years, and quietly combed through reams of secret data, according to McAfee.”
The South-South Awards were attended by Francis Lorenzo, President of South-South News, Yiping Zhou, Director of the UNDP Special Unit for South-South Cooperation, and H.E. Amb. John Ashe, President of the High Level Committee on South-South Cooperation (13 Sept. 2012).
November
“Adam Rogers, Coordinator of the World Alliance of Cities Against Poverty, accepts an award from Yiping Zhou, Director of the UN Office for South-South Cooperation, for WACAP’s ‘Special contribution'”. (Vienna, November 26, 2012)
2013
November
From left to right: Achim Steiner, Head of UNEP, John Ashe, President of the UN General Assembly, Yiping Zhou, Director, UNOSSC.From left to right: John Ashe, President of the UN General Assembly, Achim Steiner, Head of UNEP, Yiping Zhou, Director of UNOSSC. In 2015 John Ashe was arrested by the FBI and “charged with tax fraud for failure to report or pay income taxes on the over $1 million he received in bribes in 2013 and 2014.” In 2006, the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs heard testimony alleging the awarding of a prize to the Secretary-General secured the post of Head of UNEP. In 2016, a UNDP audit rated the UNOSSC headed by Yiping Zhou “unsatisfactory”. In November 2013 “More than $450 million was pledged between investors, green businesses, governments and other parties at the 2013 Global South-South Development Expo as hundreds of participants exchanged Southern-grown ideas, solutions and technologies throughout the week-long event.” announced jointly by Ashe, Steiner and Zhou in Nairobi, Kenya.
Diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks claimed that the casino and hospitality sector accounted for over 50% of Macau’s GDP but that, “its phenomenal success is based on a formula that facilitates if not encourages money laundering.”
UN General Assembly (UNGA) President John Ashe was arrested by the FBI in New York in 2015 and “charged with tax fraud for failure to report or pay income taxes on the over $1 million he received in bribes in 2013 and 2014.”
“Macau, SAR, China: 25 August – A High-level Multi-stakeholders Strategy Forum on South-South cooperation for sustainable development got off to a strong start Tuesday, with more than 200 delegates, from 50+ countries. The two-day Forum began with an opening ceremony featuring distinguished and powerful champions of South-South cooperation.
“We have seen a substantial global reduction in the number of poor people living in extreme poverty,” said Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, of Dominica. “However, despite these gains, much more needs to be done. I wholeheartedly believe the path toward the kind of sustainable solutions we need lies through increase global support for south-south cooperation.”
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in his message to the Forum, said, “It is clear that every country of the South has something of value to bring to the table, and that South-South and triangular cooperation will be crucial to ensuring the achievement of the sustainable development goals, shared prosperity and a life of dignity for all, where no one is left behind.”
This Strategy Forum is a timely opportunity to “review, consolidate, and enhance existing instruments and institutional arrangements,” said Ambassador Denis Antoine of Grenada, on behalf of Sam Kutesa of Uganda, President of the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly. “We need to build a more self-sustaining global South-South support architecture that addresses global and regional challenges. As we seek to strengthen support for existing initiatives, it is important to ensure that they are inclusive and their benefits and impacts are equitable.”
Under the leadership of Ambassador Abul Kalam Abdul Momen of Bangladesh, President of the General Assembly High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation, participants reviewed and strategically aligned existing instruments and innovative new approaches with diverse institutional partnerships and networks toward building an institutional alliance of the Global South to address global and regional challenges.
Despite the strong performance of many developing countries, progress across the South has been uneven. Extreme poverty, rampant inequality, malnutrition and vulnerability to climate and weather-related shocks persist.
According to the Multidimensional Poverty Index launched by UNDP this year, 2.2 billion people still live in abject of poverty. About 1.4 billion people, the majority of whom live in the Global South, still have no reliable electricity, 900 million do not have access to clean water and 2.6 billion do not have adequate sanitation.
The High-level Multi-stakeholders Strategy Forum aims to share experiences, perspectives and practical approaches to supporting the Global South to develop its own long-term vision for South-South cooperation and a global institutional arrangement as envisioned by the South Summits.
The outcome of the Forum will comprise a meaningful contribution toward the implementation of the emerging Post-2015 sustainable development goals (SDGs).
The Strategy Forum will also serve as an immediate follow-up to the High-level Meeting on South-South and Triangular Cooperation in the Post-2015 Development Agenda: Financing for Development in the South and Technology Transfer which was held from 17-18 May 2015, in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Contact information
For more information including a complete list of speakers: http://www.unossc.org/ Media Contacts: Adam Rogers, UNOSSC Geneva: adam.rogers@undp.org, mobile +41 79 849 0679; or Mithre J. Sandrasagra, UNOSSC New York: mithre.sandrasagra@undp.org, mobile +1 646 391 7834″
“US authorities charged a former president of the United Nations General Assembly, a billionaire Macao real estate developer and four others on Tuesday for engaging in a wide-ranging corruption scheme.
John Ashe, a former UN ambassador from Antigua and Barbuda who was general assembly president from 2013 to 2014, was accused in a complaint filed in federal court in New York of taking more than $1.3 million in bribes from businessmen, including developer Ng Lap Seng.”
“Adam Rogers, an assistant director at the UN Office for South-South Cooperation [UNOSSC], said Ng made hosting that UN event possible. He called today’s reports linking a bribery probe involving UN officials to Ng “upsetting,” saying he believed the developer’s motivations were to simply facilitate hosting an important meeting.”
“Ng is charged with paying $500,000 in bribes to former United Nations diplomat John W. Ashe, primarily to get him to push for the construction of a “multibillion dollar” U.N. expo center in Macau for the benefit of Ng’s Sun Kian Ip Group.”
“Statements and briefs filed by the prosecutors indicate Ng’s financial activities in the U.S. surged this year in the weeks before and after an Aug. 25-26 U.N. conference in Macau at which some 200 delegates endorsed the construction of a “South-South Expo” center in the city.”
“Ashe played a prominent role at the Macau meeting both as chairman of the U.N. South-South Steering Committee for Sustainable Development and as co-chairman of Ng’s Sun Kian Ip Group Foundation, which sponsored the event.”
“Francis Lorenzo, who has been charged with acting as a middleman for Ng’s alleged bribes, played a similar range of roles at the Macau meeting. He was there as executive president of the South-South steering committee and the International Organization for South-South Cooperation, president of the Sun Kian Ip Group Foundation and deputy U.N. ambassador for the Dominican Republic. Around 20 U.N. ambassadors attended the meeting.”
“The Sun Kian Ip Group Foundation donated $1.5 million to the U.N. Office for South-South Cooperation to help finance the Macau meeting and another one held in Dhaka in May; the foundation earlier this year offered the U.N. office a further $13.5 million but U.N. officials have said that will not be accepted as the organization has launched multiple reviews of its ties to the foundation following the arrests of Ng and Ashe.”
“Local billionaire Ng Lap Seng made use of five non-government organisations (NGOs) which are all affiliated to his real estate investment firm Sun Kian Ip Group to interact with six departments of the United Nations in various ways – such as sponsoring their events and funding staff travel – discloses the latest published internal audit report by the Office of Internal Oversight Service (OIOS) of the United Nations (UN).
The internal audit report, which was undertaken at the request of the Secretary-General of the UN and was released over the weekend, presents evidence that the local businessman’s attempts to curry favour with the UN could date back to 2008, when one of his NGOs was listed as a participant in the organisation’s Global Compact initiative.
According to OIOS, the five NGOs that Ng was using to interact with UN bodies are the Global Sustainability Foundation, International Organisation for South-South Co-operation, World Harmony Foundation, South-South News and Sun Kian Ip Group Foundation.”
“The UN audit body stated in the report that Sun Kian Ip Group had offered iPads to all participants for a co-sponsored event titled ‘High Level Multi Stakeholder Strategy Forum on South-South and Triangular Co-operation’ in the Special Administrative Region last August.
The local developer contributed US$1.5 million (MOP12 million) to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the event, which was attended by a number of UN Secretariat staff, OIOS said.
The report reads that the proffered iPads all had 64GB capacity and were engraved with the logo of the organisers on the back.
‘They received the iPads at the registration desk upon arrival, where they were informed that the forum was a ‘paperless event’; all documents relating to its meetings or presentations had been pre-loaded in the device for their use,’ OIOS wrote, adding that ‘there was no attempt by the organisers to take back the iPads’ when the event was concluded.
According to the audit department, three UN staff members who attended the forum only handed over the devices after the commencement of the audit. In particular, one from the Global Compact Office stated to the audit body that he kept the iPad for himself.”
“The UN audit also found that Ng’s self-owned news outlet South-South News had funded travel for a staff member of the UN Department for General Assembly and Conference Management for two seminars in Hong Kong and Macau last April and August, respectively. The two seminars were both on the topic of ‘South-South Co-operation’.
Another staff member of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) was funded by the news company to participate in a high-level meeting in Hong Kong in April 2012. The audit report stated that the UN-Habitat later signed a memorandum with South-South News as a media partner for co-operation on the ‘World Urban Campaign’ in July 2012.
South-South News had actually been accorded media accreditation and provided office space in the UN secretariat by the UN Department of Public Information since 2010, the report claimed.”
“Recent leaks from the Panama Papers have disclosed that such a company of the local businessman was established in the British Virgin Islands in May 2010, indicating the news outlet had sponsored UN events on at least three occasions.”
“In the report, OIOS highly criticised the lack of due diligence checks by UN departments in selecting their partners, allowing the organisation to be involved with parties ‘whose interests may be at odds with those of the UN’.
‘Various resolutions of the General Assembly have recognised the importance of developing partnerships with the private sectors, NGOs and civil society… However, engaging in partnerships requires that a robust due diligence process is established and consistently applied to ensure that the attendant risks are mitigated,’ the audit body said.
‘The above instances of non-compliance with due diligence requirements exposed the organisation to the risk that it could get involved with external parties whose interests may be at odds with those of the United Nations – particularly its integrity, independence and impartiality,’ it concluded.”
“Ng Lap Seng, Macau businessman charged by US authorities with bribing former United Nations leaders – Owned a BVI firm that ran South-South News, which had been granted the right to be stationed in the UN headquarters despite its lack of journalistic track record.”
“Internal controls, government and risk-management processes either not established or not functioning well, audit of Office for South-South Cooperation found.”
“In the report, OIOS highly criticised the lack of due diligence checks by UN departments in selecting their partners, allowing the organisation to be involved with parties ‘whose interests may be at odds with those of the UN’.
‘Various resolutions of the General Assembly have recognised the importance of developing partnerships with the private sectors, NGOs and civil society… However, engaging in partnerships requires that a robust due diligence process is established and consistently applied to ensure that the attendant risks are mitigated,’ the audit body said.
The Audit makes 16 recommendations with the objective of improving UNOSSC’s effectiveness in the areas of: governance; programme and project activities; and operations. Among the recommendations are that UNOSSC should ‘work with UNDP and other partners on clarifying its accountability and reporting lines.’
UNOSSC has initiated this dialogue in line with the management action plan outlined in the Audit. Based on two of the recommendations, UNDP has taken steps to strengthen its oversight of UNOSSC, pertaining specifically to human resources and assessment processes. Both these recommendations have been implemented in line with the management action plan outlined in the Audit. As a member of the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI), UNDP takes performance effectiveness, accountability and transparency issues with utmost seriousness and will continue to ensure the highest standards are met in these areas.”
Statement Concerning the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), May 5, 2016.
“The initial reports said the cause of death was a heart attack. But later reports said it was “traumatic asphyxia with laryngeal cartilage fractures” after dropping a barbell on his neck, according to the Westchester County Medical Examiner’s office.
When I first heard the news that Ashe had died, I thought about the stress of uncertainty in his life. He was facing a two count indictment on tax evasion charges, followed by guilty pleas of other conspirators.
The DOJ was reportedly contemplating a superseding indictment based on those guilty pleas.
Pressure was building.
Perhaps Ashe was also working on a plea deal that might have been set at the status hearing on June 27.
Meanwhile the court had to appoint an attorney for Ashe. His former lawyer hadn’t been paid and asked to be dismissed. The judge appointed a new lawyer under the Criminal Justice Act.
“DHARAMSALA, July 8: United States has raised suspicion over China’s alleged involvement in bribing a news outlet focused on United Nations to push positive stories about China.
Chinese officials were involved in developing South-South News, a New York-based English language media outfit focused on the U.N. and development issues, according to court papers filed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, reports Reuters.com July 7.
Prosecutors have claimed Macau billionaire real estate developer Ng Lap Seng, the founder of South-South News has funneled a portion of $500,000 in bribes he paid to former U.N. General Assembly President John Ashe, the report adds.”
“The former head of the Global Sustainability Foundation has been jailed after admitting passing bribes to a former UN General Assembly president. …
“Sheri Yan, Global Sustainability Foundation’s former chief executive, was sentenced on Friday by US District Judge Vernon Broderick in Manhattan after pleading guilty in January to passing bribes to John Ashe, the former General Assembly president.
Broderick, who also fined her $US12,500 ($A16,650) and ordered her to forfeit $US300,000, said that because of her crimes, “there was substantial damage done to the UN itself and the image of the UN“.
“There’s no question this crime was a serious offence,” he said.”
US District Judge Vernon Broderick: “there was substantial damage done to the UN itself and the image of the UN”.
“Lorenzo testified Ng paid him up to $50,000 monthly to push the ambitious multibillion-dollar project along and funneled another $300,000 to former U.N. General Assembly President John Ashe, who was charged in the case before he died last year in an accident at home.
Over several days, Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Zolkind elicited from Lorenzo an unsavory depiction of the ease with which Lorenzo and Ashe accepted and sometimes solicited tens of thousands of dollars to supplement modest salaries as ambassadors.
Within months of meeting Ng in late 2009, Lorenzo testified, he agreed to supplement his $72,000 salary at the U.N. with $20,000 a month as president of Ng’s new not-for-profit, South South News.
“Did you have any experience in media or in news reporting?” Zolkind asked.
Ng Lap Seng, a Chinese billionaire who wanted to build a U.N. facility in China that would be as big as the one in New York, was convicted of bribery, conspiracy and money laundering charges on Thursday.
“She said the 69-year-old Ng paid millions of dollars to two U.N. ambassadors over a five-year period to clear away red tape so he could build a conference center in Macau that would be the “Geneva of Asia,” where tens of thousands of people would spend money at his hotel, a marina, a condominium complex, a heliport and a shopping center.
Echenberg said it was a project that would bring Ng and his family “fame and more fortune.”
“Brick by brick, bribe by bribe, the defendant built the path that he thought would build his legacy,” she said.”
“The political endeavours of Macau tycoon Ng Lap Seng over the years have seen his business empire grow across the continents, but at the ultimate price – behind bars.”
“The trial evidence showed that Ng bribed Ambassador Ashe and Ambassador Lorenzo (together, the “Ambassadors”) in exchange for their agreement to use their official positions to advance Ng’s interest in obtaining formal UN support for the Macau Conference Center. As the evidence demonstrated at trial, Ng paid the Ambassadors in a variety of forms. For example, Ng appointed Ambassador Lorenzo as the President of South-South News, a New York-based organization — funded by Ng — which described itself as a media platform dedicated to advancing the implementation of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals, a set of philanthropic goals. Ng provided bribe payments to Ambassador Lorenzo through South-South News by transmitting payments from Macau to a company in the Dominican Republic affiliated with Ambassador Lorenzo’s brother (the “Dominican Company”). Through South-South News, Ng also made payments to Ambassador Ashe, including to Ambassador Ashe’s wife, who was paid in her capacity as a “consultant” to South-South News, and to an account that Ambassador Ashe had established, purportedly to raise money for his role as President of UNGA.”
“Finally, the S5 Indictment alleged that because of Ng’s bribes, “UNOSSC did not hold a UNOSSC Expo in 2015. Instead, UNOSSC held a ‘forum’ in Macau, China, co-hosted by a foundation in the name of the Macau Real Estate Development Company, in or about late August 2015.”
“The Government identified two specific acts that the Ambassadors obtained from other UN officials: (1) a letter of support for the Macau Conference Center signed by Yiping Zhou (“Zhou”), the then-Director of UNOSSC (together with other letters of support signed by Zhou, the “UNOSSC Support Letters”); and (2) a pro bono agreement with the UNOSSC that identified a foundation associated with Ng’s company as being involved in the next UNOSSC Expo (the “Pro Bono Agreement”). (Id. at 6-7.) Specifically, the Government stated:
In an effort to further [Ng’s] objectives—and to avoid losing the payments that they had been receiving from [Ng]—the Ambassadors pressured and advised other UN officials and diplomats to support the Macau Conference Center. In particular, the defendant wanted the support of UNOSSC, which was the UN office principally responsible for matters involving south-south cooperation, and which ran the annual UNOSSC Expo that the defendant wanted to relocate permanently to the Macau Conference Center. For example, in or about late 2013 and early 2014, the Ambassadors, acting in their official capacities, caused the then-director of UNOSSC to sign a letter expressing his office’s support for the Macau Conference Center. [Ng] used this letter—like he used the revised UN Document—to demonstrate that the Macau Conference Center project had the UN’s support.”
“The defense claims that it “learned for the first time that the government contended that the UNOSSC materials [the UNOSSC Support Letters and the Pro Bono Agreement] and Mr. Yiping Zhou were part of the bribery allegations during the [Government’s] opening statement.”
Former UNOSSC Director Yiping Zhou is pictured left, beside former Deputy Director Inyang Ebong-Harstrup.
“Charming and gregarious, Sheri Yan was once known for hosting soirees around the world where diplomats mingled with millionaire business executives and socialites. But her life changed forever in October 2015, when she was arrested by FBI agents in New York and accused of bribing the former president of the United Nations General Assembly, John Ashe.”
“In 2012, the woman who had left China almost two decades earlier was preparing to launch her own organisation to help the UN reduce global poverty and aid development.
The Global Sustainability Foundation would, according to Yan’s pitch, be backed by ‘political leaders, successful business people, and members of the world’s best-known families.’”
“When Ng set up his UN-affiliated NGO South-South News, the FBI again found evidence that the Communist Party was influencing the organisation and determining the agenda it would push as it hosted conferences and published news stories.”
“In August 2013, South South News, a U.N.-accredited nonprofit bankrolled by Macau casino tycoon Ng Lap Seng, began depositing $20,000 each month into Ashe’s bank account. Ng was already on the radar of U.S. authorities: In the 1990s, Senate investigators identified him as the likely conduit of hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal donations to the Democratic National Committee and 1996 Clinton re-election campaign.”
“Now almost two decades later, Ng was using South-South News, a small New York-based media outlet that covered development and U.N.-related news, as a front to pay Ashe to get his support for a project to build a U.N. conference center in Macau, according to U.S. prosecutors. In addition to enhancing China’s power and prestige, the establishment of a U.N. conference center in Macau would present China with significant intelligence-gathering and recruitment opportunities, said one former senior U.S. intelligence official.”
“The center never materialized, but court filings say that Ng was secretly being investigated as part of a counter-espionage probe of a suspected Chinese spy, and business associate of Ng’s, named Qin Fei; Ng paid to renovate Qin’s $10 million mansion on New York’s Long Island. The mansion was being converted into a conference center for South-South News, Ng’s U.N. nonprofit, said Ng’s lawyer, Hugh Mo, who denies his client had any connection with Chinese intelligence (though Qin, Mo said, was being wiretapped under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act).”
“Yan, like Ng Lap Seng, created her own U.N. nonprofit, the Global Sustainability Foundation. And like South-South News, it also received U.N. accreditation and championed the U.N’s millennium goals, an ambitious set of voluntary, country-by-country targets aimed at reducing global poverty. Yan also arranged for bribes to Ashe to benefit three other Chinese businessmen, say U.S. court documents.”
“If there are no consequences for the [UN] agencies for failures like these … there will be more breaches.”
“About this investigation: While researching cybersecurity last November, we came across a confidential report about the UN. Networks and databases had been severely compromised – and almost no one we spoke to had heard about it. This article about that attack adds to The New Humanitarian’s previous coverage on humanitarian data. We look at how the UN got hacked and how it handled this breach, raising questions about the UN’s responsibilities in data protection and its diplomatic privileges.“
“Below is a complete list of renowned speakers at the Conference:
• Hj Mohd Rashid HASNON, Deputy Speaker of Parliament of Malaysia • Miwa KATO, Director of Operations in UNODC Headquarters Former UN Women Regional Director of Asia Pacific • Yiping ZHOU, Special Envoy and Special Advisor of the World Women Organization, Former Director of the United Nations Office of South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC), Former Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for South-South Cooperation”
“Law360 (March 17, 2021, 9:06 PM EDT) — A jailed Chinese real estate developer’s compassionate release over COVID-19 concerns will go ahead after a Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday rejected a last minute objection from prosecutors, who cited the defendant’s initial refusal to be vaccinated last month.
Ng Lap Seng’s four-year-sentence for allegedly bribing United Nations officials will be cut short after all following U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick’s decision not to reverse his Monday order granting release. However, the 72-year-old Ng will remain in custody until he receives his second vaccine dose next week, the judge ruled.
“There’s a certain level of humanity in this situation I’ve decided to exercise and not put Mr. Ng through that sort of whipsaw effect,” the judge said at a telephone conference Wednesday afternoon. “This is a unique situation.”
Prosecutors raised the alarm Tuesday that Ng declined to be vaccinated in early February before changing his mind a few weeks later, arguing that Ng’s behavior “substantially diminishes any otherwise-applicable basis to be considered for early release in light of the pandemic.”
“Ng Lap Seng, a bribery convict who was granted early release from the U.S. prison, was confirmed to return to Macau on April 21 Wednesday, a source who wishes to stay anonymous told the Times.
The Times has contacted the Police Force today (Friday) and waiting for their confirmation about Ng’s current whereabouts.
Considering that Ng has returned to Macau from the U.S., he ought to have observed the mandatory quarantine in one of the designated facilities in Macau for 21 days, and self-health management measures for at least 7 days.
“He was chatting all the time, laughing and complaining all at the same time,” a guest, who had checked into the same quarantine hotel with Ng, revealed the matters to the Times.
Earlier on March 18 (Macau time), a U.S. District Judge Vernon Broderick mandated a permission for Ng to be early released from prison on compassionate grounds due to his deteriorating health.”
“SIDS have also shown critical leadership in the creation of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“In 2014, SIDS helped lead the negotiations, ultimately creating what is known as the SAMOA Pathway, a blueprint to ensure priorities of SIDS were reflected in the final 17 SDGs.
“Before that, John William Ashe skillfully set the stage for the SDGs by working with larger countries to create a process for the SDGs that truly had global buy in.”
“China’s top anti-corruption watchdogs recently released a new anti-bribery Guideline designed to focus on multi-national corporations and individuals that pay bribes in China, as opposed to bribe recipients, the Chinese Communist Party’s traditional focus.”
“Recent decisions also highlight the DOJ’s global reach and the array of federal statutes at its disposal to prosecute bribery occurring entirely abroad. In particular, in United States v. Ng Lap Seng, the same court affirmed the FCPA conviction of a Chinese national and real estate developer for bribes paid to two United Nations ambassadors to induce the U.N. to use his convention center in Macau to host an annual U.N. convention.13”
“Le bureau de la Cooperation Sud-Sud l’a trouve tres ‘humble, tres heureux d’organiser une reunion et d’etre plus proche de l’ONU’, declare Inyang Ebong-Harstrup, une des membres de l’equipe.”
“… a group of Chinese citizens, belonging to the Tiger Head clan, at whose summit was Zhou Yiping.”
One Nation Under Blackmail – Vol. 2: The Sordid Union Between Intelligence and Organized Crime that Gave Rise to Jeffrey Epstein Vol. 2 · Volume 2 by Whitney Alyse Webb , 2022
“Spies and Lies by Alex Joske is a groundbreaking exposé of elite influence operations by China’s little-known Ministry of State Security. Revealing for the first time how the Chinese Communist Party has tasked its spies to deceive the world, it challenges the conventional account of China’s past, present and future.
Mere years ago, Western governments chose to cooperate with China in the hope that it would liberalize, setting aside concerns about human rights abuses, expansionism and espionage. But the axiom of China’s ‘peaceful rise’ has been fundamentally challenged by the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarian behavior under Xi Jinping.
“On the basis of its audit results, OAI assigns an overall rating for the business unit audited. OAI uses four rating categories: “satisfactory”; “partially satisfactory/some improvement needed”; partially satisfactory/major improvement needed; and “unsatisfactory”. A definition of each audit rating is available below.”
Audit Ratings – Definition
“A rating of “satisfactory” means that the assessed governance arrangements, risk management practices and controls were adequately established and functioning well. Issues identified by the audit, if any, are unlikely to affect the achievement of the objectives of the audited entity/area.
A rating of “partially satisfactory/some improvement needed” means that the assessed governance arrangements, risk management practices and controls were generally established and functioning, but need some improvement. Issues identified by the audit do not significantly affect the achievement of the objectives of the audited entity/area.
A rating of “partially satisfactory/major improvement needed” means that the assessed governance arrangements, risk management practices and controls were established and functioning, but need major improvement. Issues identified by the audit could significantly affect the achievement of the objectives of the audited entity/area.
A rating of “unsatisfactory” means that the assessed governance arrangements, risk management practices and controls were either not adequately established or not functioning well. Issues identified by the audit could seriously compromise the achievement of the objectives of the audited entity/area.”
How to Report Corruption and Bribery at UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)
The Office of Audit and Investigations (OAI) “provides UNDP with effective independent and objective internal oversight that is designed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of UNDP’s operations in achieving its development goals and objectives through the provision of internal audit and related advisory services, and investigation services.”
They can be directly emailed here: reportmisconduct@undp.org
Espionage: The practice of spying or use of spies, typically by governments to obtain political and military information.
FCPA: The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78dd-1, et seq. (“FCPA”), was enacted for the purpose of making it unlawful for certain classes of persons and entities to make payments to foreign government officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business. Specifically, the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA prohibit the willful use of the mails or any means of instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of any offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of money or anything of value to any person, while knowing that all or a portion of such money or thing of value will be offered, given or promised, directly or indirectly, to a foreign official to influence the foreign official in his or her official capacity, induce the foreign official to do or omit to do an act in violation of his or her lawful duty, or to secure any improper advantage in order to assist in obtaining or retaining business for or with, or directing business to, any person.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): The Division for Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) seeks to provide leadership and catalyse action in promoting and coordinating implementation of internationally agreed development goals, including the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
UN: The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945. It is currently made up of 193 Member States. The mission and work of the United Nations are guided by the purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter.
UNDP: United Nations Development Programme. On the ground in about 170 countries and territories, UNDP works to eradicate poverty while protecting the planet.
UN Global Compact: A call to companies to align strategies and operations with universal principles on human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption, and take actions that advance societal goals.
UN General Assembly: The General Assembly is one of the six main organs of the United Nations, the only one in which all Member States have equal representation: one nation, one vote. All 193 Member States of the United Nations are represented in this unique forum to discuss and work together on a wide array of international issues covered by the UN Charter, such as development, peace and security, international law, etc.
UNOSSC: United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (formerly the Special Unit for South-South Cooperation). The United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) is a knowledge hub providing advisory and consulting services to all stakeholders on South-South and triangular cooperation. It enables developing countries to effectively face their development challenges and harness opportunities to address them.
Note: This blog post provides a summary of the unfolding corruption case that targeted the United Nations from 2010 and was revealed in 2015 by US authorities. It is offered as a resource for those interested in the role played by corruption in international development and international institutions, or who are interested in case law and the application of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. If anything, the case stands as a brazen act of criminality and corruption, and, with South-South News still based out of the United Nations and still functioning as a news service, maybe proof the UN has a long way to go to walk the talk on fighting corruption.
In future blog posts we will explore what the ongoing trials have revealed about this case and the United Nations and what lessons can be learned.
Update and Summary as of February 2020 | ‘2015 United Nations Bribery Scandal’
“We will be asking: is bribery business as usual at the UN?”, US Attorney Preet Bharara, October 2015
In autumn 2015 arrests by the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) in New York (home of the United Nations headquarters) unveiled a multinational, multi-year scheme to launder money into the US and bribe United Nations (UN) officials, in particular to support the building of a new UN “Geneva of Asia” in Macau, China for the GSSD Expo (Global South-South Development Expo), an annual gathering organised by the UNOSSC (United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation).
“Corruption at any level of government undermines the rule of law and cannot be tolerated. But corruption is especially corrosive when it occurs at an international body like the United Nations. By paying bribes to two U.N. ambassadors to advance his interest in obtaining formal support for the Macau conference center project, Ng Lap Seng tried to manipulate the functions of the United Nations. The sentence handed down today demonstrates that those who engage in corruption will pay a heavy price and serves as a reminder that no one stands above the law.”, Acting Assistant General John P. Cronan, May 2018
The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York at the time, Preet Bharara, released a flowchart showing how the alleged bribery and money laundering scheme targeting the United Nations worked. A series of court trials followed (2015-2018) for the various co-conspirators, including senior executives and board members for South-South News (see below), culminating in the 27 July 2017 conviction of the ring leader of the scheme, Macau casino billionaire Ng Lap Seng, on six counts “for his role in a scheme to bribe United Nations ambassadors to obtain support to build a conference center in Macau that would host, among other events, the annual United Nations Global South-South Development Expo“. He used the news service South-South News as a “conduit for bribery and money laundering” at the United Nations, according to the FBI, something admitted to by various co-conspirators in court and under oath. On 11 May 2018 Ng Lap Seng was sentenced to 4 years in prison.
Two NGOs plus the office of the President of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) were used by the co-conspirators to perpetrate the scheme, according to court records and the Department of Justice (DOJ):
1) South-South News: According to the United States Department of Justice, the executives of New York-based South-South News used the “21st century media platform dedicated to covering the stories of global development from the United Nations, governments, the private sector, and civil society” as a “conduit” for bribery and money laundering at the United Nations. South-South News executives were arrested in autumn 2015, along with former UN General Assembly President John Ashe (who was charged with “Filing False Income Tax Returns”). South-South News (which still exists) was founded in 2010 by Ng Lap Seng and Ambassador Francis Lorenzo with US $12 million. According to the FBI, Seng did this with the objective of bribing UN officials, laundering money into the United States – bringing US $4.5 million into the US in cash over a period of two years – and lobbying for the building of a new UN facility in Macau for the annual Global South-South Development Expo (GSSD Expo) – a “Geneva of Asia”. The new facility would cost US $3 billion and be built by Ng Lap Seng’s construction company.
“The Government identified two specific acts that the Ambassadors obtained from other UN officials: (1) a letter of support for the Macau Conference Center signed by Yiping Zhou (“Zhou”), the then-Director of UNOSSC (together with other letters of support signed by Zhou, the “UNOSSC Support Letters”);”
“At various points during the trial, the Government presented evidence that the Ambassadors used their influence over Zhou to obtain the UNOSSC Support Letters and the Pro Bono Agreement. (See, e.g., Tr. 665:4-676:23, 764:10-766:25, 1217:18-1227:16, 1314:11-1316:23, 1345:14-1350:25.) During closing arguments, the Government argued, among other things, that Ng paid bribes to obtain the UNOSSC Support Letters and the Pro Bono Agreement. (See, e.g., Tr. 3934:18-23.) At no point during trial did defense counsel object to the UNOSSC Support Letters or the Pro Bono Agreement or to the Government’s reliance on those documents as evidence of official acts, nor did defense counsel request an adjournment to attempt to call Zhou or anyone else affiliated with the UNOSSC to testify.” (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. NG LAP SENG, et al., United States District Court, S.D. New York. May 9, 2018.)
Executives of South-South News. Launched 2010.
2) Global Sustainability Foundation (GSDF): According to the United States Department of Justice, the executives of the Global Sustainability Foundation, whose mandate was “dedicated to supporting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”, were arrested and charged “for paying more than $800,000 in bribes to John W. Ashe (“Ashe”), the late former Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda (“Antigua”) to the United Nations (“UN”) and 68th President of the UN General Assembly. [Sheri] Yan pled guilty in January 2016, and was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick.”
U.S. Attorney Bharara stated: “As she admitted in court at her guilty plea, Shiwei [Sheri] Yan bribed the President of the UN General Assembly with hundreds of thousands of dollars to further private business interests. For her role in corrupting the United Nations, Yan will serve time in a federal prison.”
Sheri (Shiwei) Yan’s husband is Roger Uren, a former ASIO (Australian Security Intelligence Organisation) employee. Australia is part of the ‘Five Eyes’ intelligence sharing alliance, along with the United States, the UK, Canada and New Zealand.
UNGA President John Ashe said at the GSDF launch in 2014, “the Foundation is being launched at the ‘sunset of the MDGs era,’ and as the SDGs era approaches. He noted the difficulty in moving from eight goals and 18 targets as under the MDGs, to the 17 goals and 169 proposed for the SDGs, and said this is where the GSDF has an important role to play.”
Executives of the Global Sustainable Development Foundation (GSDF). Launched 2014 (one year before the UN’s launch of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, of which UNGA President John Ashe was a key negotiator).
South-South News Executives, Co-conspirators and Charges
Ng Lap Seng, Macau casino owner and founder and funder of South-South News: On 11 May 2018 Ng Lap Seng was sentenced to 4 years in prison for being the ring leader of an elaborate, multi-year, multinational scheme to bribe UN officials and launder money into the United States.
Francis Lorenzo, Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN for the Dominican Republic and co-founder of South-South News: Bribery. Admitted to his role in the bribery scheme but was spared prison because of his cooperation in providing testimony. He was ordered to do community service and to pay US $243,965 in restitution.
Global Sustainability Foundation (GSDF) Executives and Charges
Shiwei (Sheri) Yan, Founder, Vice Chair and CEO for the Global Sustainability Foundation (GSF) (http://sdg.iisd.org/news/global-sustainable-development-foundation-launched-at-un/), whose purpose was “dedicated to supporting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”: Conspiracy to Commit Bribery. Sentenced to 20 months in prison.
Heidi Hong Park (Piao), Finance Director for the GSF: Conspiracy to Commit Bribery.
John Ashe, President of UNGA 68 and Honorary Chairman of GSDF: Filing False Income Tax Returns.
The SDG Knowledge Hub posted an “Editor’s Note” in 2018 stating “In October 2015, Sheri Yan, John Ashe and several other individuals were charged in connection with a multi-year scheme to pay bribes to Ashe. The payments were delivered in part in relation to Ashe’s role as Honorary Chairman of GSDF. In July 2016, Sheri Yan was sentenced in Manhattan federal court to 20 months in prison for paying more than $800,000 in bribes to Ashe. Ashe died before he was sentenced in the case.”
President of the UN General Assembly and Charges
John W. Ashe, President of UN General Assembly: Filing False Income Tax Returns
Macau: World Centre for Money Laundering, Sex Trafficking (Sources: UNODC and US Department of State)
According to the UNODC’s (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) Regional Representative Jeremy Douglas, “Macau has for a long time been seen as a place to launder money and for organized crime to do business, and while times and methods have changed it still [is] unfortunately seen this way by many,” he told Macau Business.
The money comes from drugs, counterfeit goods and medicines, people-smuggling, trafficking of wildlife and timber, and sex trafficking.
According to the United States Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report 2019, Macau is a centre for sex trafficking.
Ng Lap Seng’s Sun Kian Ip Group was barred from the UN’s Global Compact, according to The Wall Street Journal, and Seng was flagged up as a person not to do business with, including by Interpol, “The International Criminal Police Organization”. Despite this track record and multiple warning signs, both South-South News and the United Nations took money from Ng Lap Seng.
Ng Lap Seng, in a 2010 assessment by International Risk Ltd., was found to be “characterized in the media as a ‘Macau Crime Lord’ and kingpin of the international slave prostitution trade”. He is associated with the Wo On Lok triad (a triad believed by police to be heavily involved in global sex trafficking) (https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB888439204883313500).
Globalization in Mongolia: Cultural Evidence from the UB Post by Mei-hua Lan found Mongolia’s UB Post newspaper had numerous reports on the trafficking of women to work as prostitutes in Macau’s casinos, including against their will. Why senior UN officials Yiping Zhou, Inyang Ebong-Harstrup and Adam Rogers would be so interested in collaborating with a known sex trafficker has never been publicly disclosed by the United Nations. It does, however, seem to clash with the UN’s overall mandate and stated policies.
UNOSSC
In 2015 the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC) was headed by Director Yiping Zhou and Deputy Director Inyang Ebong-Harstrup. In 2016 an audit conducted by UNDP’s Office of Audit and Investigation (OAI) found it “unsatisfactory” – the lowest rating – “A rating of ‘unsatisfactory’ means that the assessed governance arrangements, risk management practices and controls were either not adequately established or not functioning well. Issues identified by the audit could seriously compromise the achievement of the objectives of the audited entity/area.” (https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/presscenter/pressreleases/2016/05/05/statement-concerning-the-united-nations-office-for-south-south-cooperation.html).
The complexities of UN-associated media outlets receiving funding from wealthy benefactors is not isolated to South-South News. Is it okay to use UN themed or associated news services to launder money into the United States and/or to donate illegally obtained funds from the countries of the global South? Whilst US authorities do not think so (thus the many court cases and prosecutions), the UN itself has not been leading on exposing these activities. In fact, the UN continues to pump out messaging on anti-corruption and ethics in development when these activities are both unethical and illegal and occuring in its name and on its premises.
“Late in 2014, just over a month before its financial relationship with the United Nations was set to expire, the humanitarian news agency IRIN found a new benefactor.
The Hong Kong-based Jynwel Charitable Foundation seemed to appear out of thin air. It did so in the form of its founder and director, Jho Taek Low, a young Malaysian financier and member of Prime Minister Najib Razak’s inner circle. Low joined U.N. officials and IRIN’s management team at a U.N. press conference to announce a gift that would secure IRIN’s future: $25 million from Jynwel to the news agency, to be delivered to IRIN over 15 years. The donation allowed the well-regarded news outlet, whose future had been in doubt, to spin off from the U.N. and relaunch as an independent, nonprofit organization.
Known for hosting lavish parties, buying luxury real estate and collecting expensive works of art, Low, through the Jynwel Charitable Foundation, has reoriented his public image around global development’s social calendar and attracted attention as an emerging-market donor and partner to high-profile development groups.
Low’s foundation sponsored the Social Good Summit in 2014 and 2015 and has given away millions of dollars, including to the United Nations Foundation, Panthera — which works to save big cats — and Keep A Child Alive, the AIDS-fighting organization co-founded by pop star Alicia Keys.”
“DHARAMSALA, July 8: United States has raised suspicion over China’s alleged involvement in bribing a news outlet focused on United Nations to push positive stories about China.
Chinese officials were involved in developing South-South News, a New York-based English language media outfit focused on the U.N. and development issues, according to court papers filed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, reports Reuters.com July 7.
Prosecutors have claimed Macau billionaire real estate developer Ng Lap Seng, the founder of South-South News has funneled a portion of $500,000 in bribes he paid to former U.N. General Assembly President John Ashe, the report adds.”
“The U.S. returned to Malaysia another $300 million that was recovered as part of the Justice Department’s forfeiture lawsuits targeting assets that fugitive financier Low Taek Jho and his associates bought with funds allegedly stolen from the country’s 1MDB investment fund.
With the latest repatriation, the U.S. has sent $600 million back to Malaysia as part of the continuing effort to seize and liquidate the assets, including real estate, business investments, art work and jewelry, that Low, commonly known as Jho Low, his family and his cronies acquired with the money they are accused of siphoning from the state fund after it was set up in 2009.”
“People suspected of acting as foreign agents have sought the assistance of U.S. lawyers — and in some cases, the same lawyer who has represented top Trump administration officials during the course of the Russian inquiry.
The big picture: The phenomenon underscores the web of lobbying, money and court cases that have resulted from the Chinese government’s efforts to influence U.S. decision-making.
Context: The U.S. government has been pursuing more investigations into Chinese government-directed operations to influence politics and institutions.
Driving the news: Hawaii-based consultant Nickie Mali Lum Davis recently pleaded guilty to illegally lobbying the Trump administration on behalf of the Chinese government.
Background: There’s a bit of family history here. Lum Davis’s parents, Gene and Nora Lum, pleaded guilty in 1997 to an illegal campaign fundraising scheme that benefited Democrats.
A 1998 Senate report identified a Macao billionaire named Ng Lap Seng as the source of hundreds of thousands of dollars that were illegally channeled to the Democratic National Convention as part of the same scandal. U.S. officials suspected at the time that Ng had “high-level” Chinese government connections and was “protected.”
In 2017, Ng was convicted in connection with a bribery and influence case at the United Nations. U.S. officials suspected that Ng’s main contact with Chinese intelligence was through a Chinese national named Qin Fei.
Abbe Lowell, a high-powered lawyer known for representing Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump during the Russia inquiry, represented both Lum Davis in her recent case and also Qin Fei amid the UN bribery investigation.”
What is the FCPA? “The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78dd-1, et seq. (“FCPA”), was enacted for the purpose of making it unlawful for certain classes of persons and entities to make payments to foreign government officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business. Specifically, the anti-bribery provisions of the FCPA prohibit the willful use of the mails or any means of instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of any offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of money or anything of value to any person, while knowing that all or a portion of such money or thing of value will be offered, given or promised, directly or indirectly, to a foreign official to influence the foreign official in his or her official capacity, induce the foreign official to do or omit to do an act in violation of his or her lawful duty, or to secure any improper advantage in order to assist in obtaining or retaining business for or with, or directing business to, any person.”
The Docket
Navigating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: The Increasing Cost of Overseas Bribery
“… corrupt payments to officers and employees of public international organizations are prohibited by the FCPA’s anti-bribery provisions. Public international organizations covered by the FCPA include, among others: the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development,Inter-American Development Bank,International Maritime Organizations, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, International Finance Corporation, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Organization,Organization for African Unity,and the Organization of American States.” (Navigating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: The Increasing Cost of Overseas Bribery by Robert C. Blume and J. Taylor McConkie)
Instead of looking outward, perhaps the United Nations should look more inward as several Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions … have involved U.N. officials or U.N. programs.”
One said the ruling might be “the tip of the iceberg” that heralds more individuals challenging FCPA enforcement.
We rarely get appellate court rulings on the scope of the FCPA, so the case spurred numerous headlines. One said the ruling might be “the tip of the iceberg” that heralds more individuals challenging FCPA enforcement.
For corporate compliance officers running entire programs, however, the case is just more of the same blizzard you’ve been enduring for years – trying to find a steady path forward.
The case itself, U.S. v. Ng Lap Seng, is straightforward. A Chinese national, David Ng, was a wealthy real estate developer in Macau. In the early 2010s he bribed two United Nations officials by giving them sham consulting contracts worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, in exchange for them trying to convince other U.N. officials to declare one of Ng’s convention centers the permanent home for a lucrative annual development conference.
Eventually the scheme unraveled, and in 2017 a jury convicted Ng in federal district court of violating the FCPA.
Ng appealed. He argued that any bribery prosecution must meet the high standards of an “official act” as spelled out in McDonnell v. U.S. — a U.S. Supreme Court ruling from 2016 that addresses cases of domestic bribery of U.S. government officials. Ng wanted that same standard to apply to FCPA cases involving bribery of foreign government officials.
Um, no. The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Ng on Aug. 9, noting that the text of the FCPA defines the quid pro quo of bribery much more expansively than other parts of U.S. law that address domestic bribery. Therefore, the narrow standards of McDonnell don’t apply for FCPA prosecution.”
How to Report Corruption and Bribery at UNDP (United Nations Development Programme)
The Office of Audit and Investigations (OAI) “provides UNDP with effective independent and objective internal oversight that is designed to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of UNDP’s operations in achieving its development goals and objectives through the provision of internal audit and related advisory services, and investigation services.”
Explore what this bribery and money laundering network means for global order and the hegemony of the post-WWII American international settlement (Bretton Woods institutions etc.) here: ‘Jacked! | The Taking of the American Order
There is a fascinating cyber security back story to this story as well. We now live in the surveillance age and any criminal activity will be accompanied by a digital cyber trail. Read more here on the ongoing cyber security breaches at the United Nations and what this means for data protection and event shaping by bad actors: What is the UN doing with your data?
UNOSSC Director Yiping Zhou retires. 
David South Consulting 
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