A/HRC/4/71 page 5 6. The statement of Sergei Ordzhonikidze, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, delivered on his behalf by David Chikvaidze, described the damaging effects of corruption, which drains resources needed for services and infrastructure, perverts the rule of law, discourages external investment and aid, undercuts public confidence, feeds inequality and disenfranchises large segments of the population. He also noted the challenges corruption poses to security through trafficking, money laundering and illicit transfers that can be used to finance terrorism, and encouraged States to sign, ratify and implement the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), which entered into force in 2005. He concluded by noting that, because violations of human rights compromise anti-corruption efforts, eventually rendering them less effective, the principles and institutions of human rights promotion are indispensable elements in successful anti-corruption strategies. 7. In her opening remarks, María Francisca Ize-Charrin, Director of Operations, Programme and Research Division at OHCHR, underscored the vital role played by other United Nations agencies, intergovernmental organizations and NGOs in anti-corruption efforts, and the contribution of UNCAC, which has been signed by 140 Member States and ratified by 70. Ms. Ize-Charrin acknowledged that, although the Convention does not directly refer to human rights, it includes several references to rule of law and “there can be no rule of law without protection of human rights”. She observed that the anti-corruption movement can benefit from the experience of the human rights movement and, by removing impediments to the realization of human rights, contribute to it. Although the international movement against corruption is relatively young, it has made important strides since the days when addressing corruption was seen as an improper intrusion into domestic affairs of sovereign States and foreign bribery was a tax-deductible expense for companies in certain developed countries. She proposed that anti-corruption work, like rights-based development and poverty reduction strategies, should rely on principles of empowerment, transparency, participation, accountability, non-discrimination and rule of law. She concluded by affirming that anti-corruption measures must be compatible with human rights and should not lead to violation of the rights of those involved, including the perpetrators, witnesses and whistleblowers. 8. Param Cumaraswamy, former Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers of the Commission on Human Rights, opened his keynote address by reaffirming that “good governance should be seen as a prerequisite for the protection and promotion of human rights”. Central to good governance are ethics, the moral values and principles that guide conduct, and integrity, the correspondence between what is said and done. Integrity of public officials requires that they fulfil their responsibilities to the public, refrain from using their power for personal gain, uphold the public’s interest as paramount when conflicts of interest appear, and maintain transparency and accountability. He noted the concern expressed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996 regarding the prevalence and seriousness of corruption around the world and welcomed the adoption of the International Code of Conduct for Public Officials. Mr. Cumaraswamy denounced the pervasiveness of the problem across institutions - public administrations, corporations and professions throughout the world - from which neither the most developed countries nor the United Nations are immune. He then reviewed the experience of South-East Asia where restrictions to civil and political rights were