Mr Chairman,

May I begin by congratulating you and the other members of the Bureau for your election. We have confidence in your guidance of our discussions in the days ahead.

May I also express Finland's gratitude to the Government of Qatar for hosting the Conference.

Mr Chairman,

Finland fully associates herself with the statement just made by the Presidency of the European Union.

The large number of delegations at Doha shows that the interna-tional community truly desires determined steps against corruption.

Mr Chairman,

The Conference shall deal with a number of key issues: the review of implementation, the prevention of corruption, the recovery of as-sets and technical assistance. Finland has been active in supporting work on all of these issues. Also Finland has benefitted from the discussions that have been conducted multilaterally, for example within the framework of the OECD and Council of Europe conven-tions, and, recently, also bilaterally for example with experts from Russia and China.

It is of particular importance that we reach consensus on an effec-tive mechanism for review.

Allowing our experts the possibility of consulting different sources of information provides them with a better understanding of the situation in the country under review. This includes, in particular, allowing them to benefit from the views and experience of non-governmental organizations.

Mr Chairman,

As Ms. Huguette Labelle pointed out in her excellent article pub-lished in several international newspapers, the perils of corruption, particularly for the poor, are real. The Conference provides a good opportunity to note this fact, as well as the fact that corruption has a particular impact on women. As a result, the international campaign to prevent and respond to corruption can be seen as a women's is-sue. We know all too well that in industrialized countries, countries in transition as well as developing countries women often face dif-ferent types of discrimination. Corruption can not only compound this discrimination, but can also make it more difficult for women to seek redress and correct the situation. We have seen how corruption can affect such different aspects as the provision of basic services such as education, health care and social assistance. And we know that organized crime in the form of trafficking in persons and other sexual exploitation has taken advantage of corruption to further op-press women.

As a response, we should combine the empowerment of women with anti-corruption policies. We should ensure that our women's rights agenda takes a close look at anti-corruption, and that our anti-corruption agenda takes into consideration issues of gender.

Thank you, Mr Chairman.