Facilitating corruption and human rights violations: the role of international financial institutions

Abstract

The connection between corruption and the suppression of human rights has been recognized by scholars of human rights, state and state-corporate crime, non-governmental organizations, the United Nations as well as various governments. Scrutiny of governmental and/or regime corruption has been a primary focus, in relation to barriers and/or violations of human rights. Additionally, multinational companies’ complicity in corruptive policies and practices has raised concerns, in particular in the arms and natural resources sector. Glaringly absent, however, within the criminological literature are discussions of, and research on, the role of international financial institutions (IFIs) in relation to high levels of state corruption, save for the relatively little criminological research that has explored how cooperative endeavors between international financial institutions, transnational corporations, and states often result in demonstrably harmful activities as a result of structural adjustment policies. As such, it seems appropriate to consider how certain components and/or policies of IFIs facilitate rather than constrain corruptive practices by regimes, militias, paramilitaries, and transnational corporations. Such an exercise is not only important for its etiological contributions, but also to draw criminological attention to this phenomenon and because these organizations have stated a commitment to reducing state level corruption. I hope to extend the focus and insights of criminological analysis of crimes of globalization herein.