Corruption - What Now?

Despite various initiatives to reduce corruption, corruption is still a huge problem worldwide. The last plenary session aims to inspire the audience to engage in the work to reduce corruption. How can each of us work to reduce corruption in the future? What are the most effective ways to reveal and reduce corruption? How can young people be the driving force to solve the corruption problems we face today? These are among the questions that will be adressed on this meeting. The speakers will look at how information access can be a key to reduce corruption, and how the particiants can use their ISFiT-experience to continue their engagement against corruption when they return to their home countries.

Speakers will be Aruna Roy and Janani Sriharan, both engaged in the Right To Information campaign in India.

Aruna Roy struggles to make India's corrupt bureaucracy transparent and to regain the balance of power in favor of the citizens. She is the founder and leader of the grassroots organization Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathana (MKSS, "Workers and Peasants Strength Union"). The organization works together with workers and farmers in the state of Rajasthan in India to strengthen poor citizens democratic participation. They believe that access to relevant information is a fundamental tool for ensuring transparency and accountability in government, and that this gives people tools to control arbitrary exercise of power and corruption.

Janani Sriharan is an indian computer technician with long experience within anti corruption work on a grass root level. She has worked with Aruna Roys's organization MKSS in India, using her computer and technical skills to overcome situations that cause poverty and marginalisation.