ambassador remarks

Opening Remarks
Transparency Conference
September 19, 2007

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am pleased and honored that you could all be here for what promises to be an important and extremely informative dialogue over the next two days on transparency and ethics. We are very fortunate to be here today under the auspices of the Czech Senate. From this magnificent hall we are broadcasting the entire conference throughout the Senate. In particular, I would like to express my deep thanks and gratitude to President Sobotka for his unwavering support of this endeavor.

So what's this all about? And why are we holding a conference on transparency and ethics? And why are these principles so important as a foundation of an accountable society?

The first task is to define what we mean by transparency. In the context of society at large, transparency refers to the principles guiding the interaction between people and institutions: between citizens and policy-makers; between public and private organizations; and between individuals. In a transparent society, information affecting decision making by government, businesses and individual citizens is distributed quickly and intelligibly; the rules are applied fairly and predictably to all segments of society; the free market obtains the inputs required to function most efficiently.

At its core, transparency means that everyone knows what they can expect from their government, and that government is accountable to its society. Ethical codes of conduct, of course, can enshrine the ideals of transparency.

Ultimately, such a system demands accountability in cases of violations of these principles and public exoneration when charges are deemed improper. Such guidelines not only encourage participation from the citizenry but also strengthen confidence in the integrity of their system.

Such an outcome is good for societies for more than just the obvious reason of fair dealing. Transparent systems build respect and trust among citizens for their democracy. They help keep people engaged with their government and community.

Simply put, transparency is the core of both a democratic society and a market economy. A transparent society is efficient, fair and predictable. With less transparency, we are more likely to see an economy performing below its potential, and a democracy that is weakened by distrust and apathy.

Now I want to be clear that "transparency" is not meant to be a code word for "corruption." I have no doubt that we will hear the word corruption many times during our discussion over the next two days. And there is no doubt that corruption is probably the most visible indicator of a society that is not transparent or ethical. But as we will talk about in the days ahead, transparency is much more than corruption.

So why do we - the U.S. Government - care so much about this topic? Simply because we care about the success of the Czech Republic. This country is a strong ally and valued partner of the United States. We want your society and economy to be as strong as possible. The stronger our democracies, the more prosperous and secure we all will be. And I am convinced that increasing transparency is a key element of this. Now, I'm not here to preach. All of you know of the problems we've had in the U.S. - from Enron to WorldCom, to public servants behaving badly. Ethical lapses and a lack of transparency are problems that affect and will continue to affect all democracies, young and old. While full transparency is a goal for which all societies that care about the well-being of their peoples should strive, no society will ever be perfect. Yet, we must never stop our efforts to achieve that goal.

In the Czech Republic, I believe that transparency has been a guiding principle since the revolution in 1989, and that the progress made towards that goal is the foundation of much of the remarkable success this country has achieved during this relatively brief period. But I've spoken to a great many Czechs, from all segments of society, who are concerned about the state of transparency in this country today; public opinion polls regularly highlight significant mistrust of public and private institutions and personal apathy about changing the situation.

So, in the spirit of sharing the lessons the United States has learned over the years, as well as the lessons of many European and other countries who are also struggling with transparency, we decided to put together this conference as a means of advancing an already active debate in this country and as a means for all of our democracies to grow and prosper.

What are some of the important elements of transparency that we will be discussing over the coming days? Certainly there is a strong economic component. Many of America's finest and largest companies are actively operating in the Czech Repbulic, investing tens of millions of dollars every year and creating thousands of jobs. There is no question that these companies will be better served by a more open business environment with simplified and transparent government regualation, and effective protection of their intellectual property rights.

In a very short time, the Czech Republic has transformed its political and economic landscape. However, the benchmarks of today's global economy are constantly shifting. The buzz words of today are globalization and adaptability. Resources - labor and capital - are mobile. In an era of increasingly vigorous competition, no one -- not the U.S., not the Czech Republic -- can rest on their laurels. We all have to do more.

Make no mistake, there are real financial costs to lack of transparency. A recent study concluded that fraud and waste in this country costs every Czech citizen more than one thousand dollars or 20,000 crowns every year.

Public officials, therefore, can and must do more to counter this trend. How? By setting an example, by fair and open procedures in the fight against corruption, and by placing emphasis on an educational curriculum that focuses on a strong sense of ethical responsibility; integrity; and public service.

The private sector also has a huge role to play in creating more transparent, efficient, and predictable business practices. Whether we are talking about enforcing corporate codes of conduct, refusing the temptation to play the game of "good corruption" versus "bad corruption," or ensuring that they give back to the community from which they draw their strength - corporations can be just as important today as governments in finding and implementing solutions to difficult social issues.

Many companies are already serving as role models of corporate citizenry: Česka Spořitelna, Johnson & Johnson, and Plzensky Prazdroj, to name just a few.

NGOs too have a large and important role to play in this dialogue. In acting as society's mirror, they can effectively point out the shortcomings in the public and private sectors, and make recommendations on how to realistically make improvements. NGO's can also praise government and corporate initiatives that strive to make progress.

And here I would like to highlight the efforts of Transparency International, which has nearly 90 offices around the world, all dedicated to stamping out the scourge of corruption. Completely by coincidence today, Transparency International's very active Czech branch is launching its fraud hotline. By dialing #199, citizens can report fraud, abuse and waste immediately. Yet another important way NGOs are helping to shape this critical debate.

Let me spend just another minute or two outlining how the conference will proceed. We have several panels made up of distinguished speakers who are dedicated to making transparency a priority. They --and you -- will help us capture the essence of the challenges that exist in four key areas: Government, Rule of Law, Business, and the role of a responsible media.

Ethics in government is an enormously important topic. Leaders must show that they are accountable for their conduct and decisions. We could not be more fortunate to have Daniel Lipšic moderating this panel. As the former Minister of Justice of Slovakia, he championed and implemented tough anti-corruption laws and set high standards for public accountability.

He will be joined by a panel of leading figures from across the spectrum of Czech politics, plus former American Congressman Bob Weygand, and a senior representative from the European Commission.

A transparent society requires honest and effective legal and judiciary organs. Our "Rule of Law" panel will delve into the issue of how governments maintain the delicate balance between robust investigative tools needed to uncover fraud -- and protection of privacy and personal liberties. We are thrilled to have a senior U.S. Attorney and an experienced FBI agent here to present the American experience with these important challenges.

Tomorrow's program is equally impressive. The morning starts off with an address by Renata Vesecka, the Chief Prosecutor of the Czech Republic.

Following her address, we are very excited to have a panel of seasoned businessmen to explore the issue of promoting ethics from a corporate perspective. I am especially pleased that we managed to entice Jack Stack back to Prague for the first time since he retired as CEO of Česka Spořitelna.

And finally, tomorrow afternoon, some of the brightest minds in Czech and international reporting - including Martin Šimečka and David McCraw - will be on hand to discuss the role of the media in ensuring public integrity.

The panelists will all offer some remarks, but the goal of this conference is to have a real dialogue. We want most of the time to be devoted to questions and answers between the audience and the panelists, from which we expect most of ideas for follow-on work will emerge. I will undertake the task of trying to summarize our debate and discussion at the end of the day tomorrow.

Before I finish, I want to point out that this conference is only one element of several events going on this week on the theme of transparency. Tomorrow, several of the speakers on today's panels will be meeting with small groups of Czech public officials for workshops on the themes that will be discussed today. On Friday, we will have two additional events, one sponsored by the Open Society Fund, and the other by Transparency International on ethical issues inside public administration. And finally, several of our speakers will also move on to Bratislava, where our sister embassy is working together with Slovak partners to host a similar conference.

My final task is to thank the many partners with whom we have cooperated on this conference, and with whom we hope to work closely in the days ahead. In the interest of transparency, the names of all our partner organizations are listed in the conference materials. To keep this brief, I will just thank by name those who have made significant financial contributions towards the success of this conference. The American Chamber of Commerce is hosting the lunch you will be served today, the Expat Business Association is hosting a reception for the conference this evening, and the British Embassy is hosting tomorrow's lunch. Thanks to each of you for your support.

And now, it is my pleasure to introduce the President of the Czech Senate, Senator Premysl Sobotka.

[President Sobotka Speaks]

And now, we have the great fortune to have as our keynote speaker, the chief federal prosecutor for the state of Louisiana - Jim Letten. Mr. Letten has been involved the fight against public corruption for over 20 years. A native of Louisiana, Mr. Letten has been involved in some of the largest public fraud cases in Louisiana history, including the successful prosecution of a then-sitting governor.

I am sure you will find Jim's remarks insightful, uplifting, and empowering. Please welcome, Jim Letten.