JAKARTA. Indonesia and China have agreed to work closer in tackling corruption and strengthening their antigraft partnership.

The joint battle against corruption was the focus of the meeting between Deputy Attorney General Darmono and his Chinese counterpart, Cao Jingming, in Jinan, Shandong province, China, on Saturday.

The Indonesian Embassy in Beijing issued a press statement saying that the meeting between officials of both countries' Attorney General's Office (AGO) was conducted on the sidelines of the fifth meeting of the International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA).

Darmono emphasized that no country could effectively tackle the corruption alone. “Half, and in some cases all, the money stolen in corruption crimes is taken abroad,” he said as quoted by Antara news agency.

Darmono said anticorruption law enforcers needed to improve their technical capacities, such as developing a mastery of information technology (IT).

“It is important because the transfer of assets resulting from corruption is conducted using sophisticated communication technology,” Darmono said.

He added that corruption eradication required a comprehensive strategy including prevention, public education, the harmonizing of regulations and asset recovery efforts as well as international cooperation.

During the IAACA meeting, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Chinese AGO signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in corruption eradication. Around 200 participants from 50 countries attended the IAACA meeting. (hrl/ebf)

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