Federal government attacks bribery.

• Author: Mandziuk, Steve

You know that your competition is trying to get the leg up on you by wining and dining the Assistant to the Undersecretary to the Secretary of Commerce of Yugania. Your company is trying very hard to export agricultural products to that country, and you think it's completely unfair that your chief competitor is showering this government official with popular Canadian gifts: a ski holiday in Banff and Jasper, cases of maple syrup, smoked salmon by the kilogram for him and his friends, a fake RCMP hat, Canadian cigarettes, cash gifts, and even a toque and an Oilers hockey jersey! Frustrated by the limitations of your own client entertainment budget, you rage and stomp your feet and curse the injustice of it all. Fortunately for you, the Government of Canada agrees that certain types of conduct in international business transactions are unfair and unlawful.

On February 14, 1999, the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act came into force. This legislation is designed to prevent Canadian companies that are doing business in other countries from gaining an unfair advantage over their competition by bribing officials and agents of foreign governments or public organizations. This is an enactment into Canadian law of an international convention: the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD's) Convention on Combatting Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. It is an attempt to impose ethical and moral standards on international business transactions.

It is now an offence under Canadian law to try to obtain or retain a business advantage by offering or agreeing to offer a "loan, reward, advantage or benefit" of any sort to a foreign public official. A foreign public official is defined in the Act to include any person who represents foreign countries or divisions of those countries such as states or provinces, or who represents an international organization. The intention of the statute is to attack bribery. This is a serious offence: fines can be imposed by the courts and an offender can be imprisoned. If a person or corporation conspires to bribe an official, that is also an offence. Furthermore, it is illegal to be in possession of property or proceeds from property that can be traced back to the bribing of a foreign official and the Act also prohibits laundering money that comes from bribery. Possession and laundering of money or property that is derived from conduct that contravenes...