Roundup: World leaders pledge "global action" to fight corruption at London summit

British David Cameron on Thursday hosted a major international Anti-Corruption Summit in London to step up global action to expose, punish and eliminate corruption.

Presidents from Afghanistan, Colombia, Nigeria and other countries, senior ministers from G20 countries, as well as leaders of international organizations attended the summit.

The summit has brought world leaders, civil society, businesses, sports bodies and international organizations together to make fighting corruption "a global priority." More than 40 countries, regions, and six international organizations took part in the event.

The Global Declaration against Corruption, released at the summit, announced the participating countries' ambition to expose corruption, pursue and punish the corrupt and support those affected by it.

The Anti-Corruption Summit Communique, another major document adopted by the summit, set out a common approach for achieving the anti-corruption ambitions.

"Corruption is at the heart of so many of the world's problems. It erodes public trust in government, undermines the rule of law, and may give rise to political and economic grievances," said the Communique.

"No country is immune from corruption and governments need to work together and with partners from business and civil society to tackle it successfully," it added.

Speaking on the day of the summit, Cameron said: "The evil of corruption reaches into every corner of the world. It lies at the heart of the most urgent problems we face from economic uncertainty, to endemic poverty, to the ever-present threat of radicalization and extremism."

He further urged: "A global problem needs a truly global solution. It needs an unprecedented, courageous commitment from world leaders to stand united, to speak into the silence, and to demand change."

At the summit, Chinese Minister of Supervision Huang Shuxian called on countries around the world to deepen international anti-corruption cooperation.

In a written statement presented to the summit, Huang said that the fight against corruption was a common task facing all countries, which required shared commitment and global action.

"Strengthening international anti-corruption cooperation is vital to global governance and sustainable development," he emphasized.

He urged countries to build "political consensus" on the basis of equality and trust and take incremental steps to expand cooperation.

China has made tremendous efforts to promote clean governance and curb corruption, winning trust and support from the people, Huang noted.

The first focus in China's anti-corruption drive "is to improve the (Chinese Communist) Party's style by going after formalism, bureaucratism, hedonism, and extravagance," the minister said.

"The Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee issued an eight-point decision in this respect, demanding investigations into and tougher punishment for corrupt behavior," he noted.

The targeted "corrupt behaviors" range from dining and gifting with public funds, accepting gift money at weddings, funerals or other special occasions and visiting private clubs.

Between 2013 and 2015, 114,000 violations against the "eightpoint decision" were investigated nationwide, exposing 150,000 Party officials, among whom 65,000 were disciplined, according to Huang.

China has also toughened the punishment on corruption with "zero tolerance," and "made it clear that anyone breaking those rules will be dealt with regardless of their positions," he added.

Between 2013 and 2015, 750,000 people were disciplined nationwide, including 36,000 facing criminal charges, according to the statement.

He stressed that China is "building stronger institutions to tackle corruption from its roots." Enditem