[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 14 (Monday, April 7, 2003)]
[Page 404]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Letter to Congressional Leaders Transmitting a Report on Implementation 
of the Inter-American Convention Against Corruption

April 1, 2003

Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. Chairman:)

    Pursuant to the resolution of advice and consent to ratification of 
the Inter-American Convention Against Corruption adopted by the Senate 
on July 27, 2000, I submit the enclosed report, prepared by my 
Administration, on implementation of the Convention.
    This third report to the Congress indicates that 28 of the 34 
members of the Organization of American States have formally ratified 
the Convention (Brazil and Suriname ratified the Convention in 2002) and 
that 27 have adopted the evaluation mechanism established by the 
Organization of American States to oversee implementation.
    The United States Government continues to reinforce the 
implementation and enforcement of the Convention in the hemisphere 
through numerous initiatives and programs that are described in the 
report. Moreover, since the last report, my Administration has moved 
forward with our proposed Millennium Challenge Account, which is 
intended to link U.S. foreign development assistance to, among other 
factors, the recipient's commitments to good governance and 
anticorruption efforts. The Convention recognizes that the problem of 
corruption is a major obstacle to development in the Americas. As such, 
it has energized the work of the United States and its hemispheric 
partners to find common solutions to common anticorruption challenges.
    I look forward to working with you to ensure that we continue to 
combat corruption in our hemisphere and across the globe.
    Sincerely,
                                                George W. Bush

Note: Identical letters were sent to J. Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the 
House of Representatives, and Richard G. Lugar, chairman, Senate 
Committee on Foreign Relations. This letter was released by the Office 
of the Press Secretary on April 2.