The arrest of 16 prominent businessmen on charges of corruption and embezzlement may have made the media headlines in Sudan, but under the country’s current “illegal wealth” laws there are no guarantees that any of them will be convicted in a court of law or spend time in jail. Although, Sudan’s Penal Code 2008 explicitly prohibits active or passive bribery or embezzlement, it also contains plea bargain provisions whereby the return of ill-gotten gains is sufficient to avoid prosecution. In most cases the waiver makes it possible for corrupt traders or companies to return to “business as usual”. Last month, in his address to the National Assembly, Sudan’s President Omar Al-Bashir vowed to apply the Illegal Wealth Act to uncover … Continue reading Can Sudan’s President win his war on corruption?