GAR 2015 Main Report

126

Part II - Chapter 6

aftermath of the storm Xynthia in France in 2010 (Box 6.3).

6.6 Corruption: an inconvenient

truth

Corrupt practices in hazard-prone areas contribute directly to increasing the vulnerability and exposure of assets and people. Those countries that have high levels of corruption and weak regulatory frameworks will be challenged to reduce their disaster risk.

Although the HFA provides detailed guidance on institutional and legislative arrangements, budgetary allocations and local capacities, it does not mention accountability or transparency as a requirement for effective disaster risk governance. Nor does it make reference to the challenge posed by corruption. And yet, these terms and the social and institutional realities that they signify are critical to the effectiveness of disaster risk management (Wisner et al., 2003

Wisner, Ben, Piers Blaikie, Terry Cannon and Ian Davis. 2003,At Risk: Natural Hazards, People’s vulnerability and disasters, 2nd Edition.. .

; UNISDR, 2009a

UNISDR. 2009a,Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and Poverty in a Changing Climate, Geneva, Switzerland: UNISDR.. .

; Kelman, 1998

Kelman, Ilan. 1998,Role of Technology in Managing Vulnerability to Natural Disasters, With Case Studies of Volcanic Disasters on Non-Industrialized Islands, A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science. Graduate Department of Civil Engineering, University of Toronto.. .

). The absent or limited voice of citizens and accountability of decisionmakers to the people they represent have been

identified as underlying drivers of disaster risk (UNISDR, 2009a

UNISDR. 2009a,Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and Poverty in a Changing Climate, Geneva, Switzerland: UNISDR.. .

). It is also a common characteristic of countries in conflict situations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many countries that are ranked high on indices of disaster risk and vulnerability are in conflict or post-conflict situations (Maplecroft, 2014

Maplecroft. 2014,Natural Hazards Risk Atlas 2014, Available from http://maplecroft.com/portfo-lio/new-analysis/2014/02/19/natural-hazards-risk-atlas-2014/.. .

; UNU, 2013

UNU (United Nations University). 2013,The Role of Ecosystems in Disaster Risk Reduction, Edited by Fabrice G. Renaud, Karen Sudmeier-Rieux and Marisol Estrella. Tokyo.. .

Corruption mediates both the generation of disaster risk and the impact of disasters. At the global scale, corruption has reached dimensions that dwarf development efforts (Lewis and Kelman, 2012

Lewis, James and Ilan Kelman. 2012,The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Versus Disaster Risk Creation (DRC), PLOS Currents Disasters. 21 June 2012. Edition 1. doi: 10.1371/4f8d4eaec6af8.. .

): global proceeds from criminal activities, corruption and tax evasion that flow freely across international borders are estimated at US$1 trillion to US$1.6 trillion per annum (United Nations and World Bank, 2007

United Nations and World Bank. 2007,Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative: Challenges, Opportunities, and Action Plan, June 2007. Washington, D.C.. .

). Illicit financial flows from low and middle-income countries from 2003 to 2012 were US$6.6 trillion, equivalent to almost 10 times the flow of overseas development assistance (GFI, 2014

GFI (Global Financial Integrity). 2014,Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2003-2012, Authored by Dev Kar and Joseph Spanjers. December 2014.. .

Corrupt practices during and following disasters have been well studied (Ambraseys and Bilham, 2011

Ambraseys, Nicholas and Roger Bilham. 2011,Corruption kills, Nature, Vol. 469, 13 January.. .

; Lewis, 2011

Lewis, James. 2011,Corruption: The hidden perpetrator of under-development and vulnerability to natural hazards and disasters, Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies, Vol. 3, No. 2, May 2011.. .

; IFRC, 2011

IFRC (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies). 2011,International Disaster Response Law (IDRL) in Nepal: A study on strengthening legal preparedness for international disaster response, Nepal Red Cross and IFRC. Geneva.. .

; Lewis and Kelman, 2012

). For example, a study conducted on corruption and disaster occurrence in the United States

Box 6.3 Legal repercussions after Xynthia5

At 2 a.m. on 28 February 2010, a strong tempête (storm) hit the French Atlantic coast. Xynthia combined a storm surge with a high tide, and the large waves caused flood defences to fail all along the coast from the Gironde near Bordeaux to the Loire Estuary. Over 50,000 hectares of land were flooded and 47 people died. Some 10,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes on the Atlantic coast. `

The town of La Faute-sur-Mer in Vendée saw 29 deaths, 28 of which were in a 3-hectare area labelled the “bowl of death” by the media as well as political authorities.

Four years after Xynthia, the French state prosecutor identified excessive urbanization as a reason for the high losses and attributed responsibility to the mayor and deputy mayor of La Faute-sur-Mer. Flood risk in the area was known to be high, but risk information had been hidden deliberately by the authorities to allow the construction of more than 200 new dwellings in flood-prone areas of La Faute-sur-Mer.

As a consequence, the town’s mayor has been sentenced to four years in jail. Other officials are on trial for up to 5 years of imprisonment along with fines of up to EUR 75,000.

	126 Part II - Chapter 6 aftermath of the storm Xynthia in France in 2010 (Box 6.3). 6.6 Corruption: an inconvenient truth Corrupt practices in hazard-prone areas contribute directly to increasing the vulnerability and exposure of assets and people. Those countries that have high levels of corruption and weak regulatory frameworks will be challenged to reduce their disaster risk. Although the HFA provides detailed guidance on institutional and legislative arrangements, budgetary allocations and local capacities, it does not mention accountability or transparency as a requirement for effective disaster risk governance. Nor does it make reference to the challenge posed by corruption. And yet, these terms and the social and institutional realities that they signify are critical to the effectiveness of disaster risk management (Wisner et al., 2003 x Wisner, Ben, Piers Blaikie, Terry Cannon and Ian Davis. 2003,At Risk: Natural Hazards, People’s vulnerability and disasters, 2nd Edition.. . ; UNISDR, 2009a x UNISDR. 2009a,Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and Poverty in a Changing Climate, Geneva, Switzerland: UNISDR.. . ; Kelman, 1998 x Kelman, Ilan. 1998,Role of Technology in Managing Vulnerability to Natural Disasters, With Case Studies of Volcanic Disasters on Non-Industrialized Islands, A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Master of Applied Science. Graduate Department of Civil Engineering, University of Toronto.. . ). The absent or limited voice of citizens and accountability of decisionmakers to the people they represent have been identified as underlying drivers of disaster risk (UNISDR, 2009a x UNISDR. 2009a,Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction: Risk and Poverty in a Changing Climate, Geneva, Switzerland: UNISDR.. . ). It is also a common characteristic of countries in conflict situations. Perhaps unsurprisingly, many countries that are ranked high on indices of disaster risk and vulnerability are in conflict or post-conflict situations (Maplecroft, 2014 x Maplecroft. 2014,Natural Hazards Risk Atlas 2014, Available from http://maplecroft.com/portfo-lio/new-analysis/2014/02/19/natural-hazards-risk-atlas-2014/.. . ; UNU, 2013 x UNU (United Nations University). 2013,The Role of Ecosystems in Disaster Risk Reduction, Edited by Fabrice G. Renaud, Karen Sudmeier-Rieux and Marisol Estrella. Tokyo.. . ). Corruption mediates both the generation of disaster risk and the impact of disasters. At the global scale, corruption has reached dimensions that dwarf development efforts (Lewis and Kelman, 2012 x Lewis, James and Ilan Kelman. 2012,The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Versus Disaster Risk Creation (DRC), PLOS Currents Disasters. 21 June 2012. Edition 1. doi: 10.1371/4f8d4eaec6af8.. . ): global proceeds from criminal activities, corruption and tax evasion that flow freely across international borders are estimated at US$1 trillion to US$1.6 trillion per annum (United Nations and World Bank, 2007 x United Nations and World Bank. 2007,Stolen Asset Recovery (StAR) Initiative: Challenges, Opportunities, and Action Plan, June 2007. Washington, D.C.. . ). Illicit financial flows from low and middle-income countries from 2003 to 2012 were US$6.6 trillion, equivalent to almost 10 times the flow of overseas development assistance (GFI, 2014 x GFI (Global Financial Integrity). 2014,Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2003-2012, Authored by Dev Kar and Joseph Spanjers. December 2014.. . ). Corrupt practices during and following disasters have been well studied (Ambraseys and Bilham, 2011 x Ambraseys, Nicholas and Roger Bilham. 2011,Corruption kills, Nature, Vol. 469, 13 January.. . ; Lewis, 2011 x Lewis, James. 2011,Corruption: The hidden perpetrator of under-development and vulnerability to natural hazards and disasters, Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies, Vol. 3, No. 2, May 2011.. . ; IFRC, 2011 x IFRC (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies). 2011,International Disaster Response Law (IDRL) in Nepal: A study on strengthening legal preparedness for international disaster response, Nepal Red Cross and IFRC. Geneva.. . ; Lewis and Kelman, 2012 x Lewis, James and Ilan Kelman. 2012,The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Versus Disaster Risk Creation (DRC), PLOS Currents Disasters. 21 June 2012. Edition 1. doi: 10.1371/4f8d4eaec6af8.. . ). For example, a study conducted on corruption and disaster occurrence in the United States Box 6.3 Legal repercussions after Xynthia5 At 2 a.m. on 28 February 2010, a strong tempête (storm) hit the French Atlantic coast. Xynthia combined a storm surge with a high tide, and the large waves caused flood defences to fail all along the coast from the Gironde near Bordeaux to the Loire Estuary. Over 50,000 hectares of land were flooded and 47 people died. Some 10,000 people were forced to evacuate their homes on the Atlantic coast. ` The town of La Faute-sur-Mer in Vendée saw 29 deaths, 28 of which were in a 3-hectare area labelled the “bowl of death” by the media as well as political authorities. Four years after Xynthia, the French state prosecutor identified excessive urbanization as a reason for the high losses and attributed responsibility to the mayor and deputy mayor of La Faute-sur-Mer. Flood risk in the area was known to be high, but risk information had been hidden deliberately by the authorities to allow the construction of more than 200 new dwellings in flood-prone areas of La Faute-sur-Mer. As a consequence, the town’s mayor has been sentenced to four years in jail. Other officials are on trial for up to 5 years of imprisonment along with fines of up to EUR 75,000.	Page 1 Page 10 Page 20 Page 30 Page 40 Page 50 Page 60 Page 70 Page 80 Page 90 Page 100 Page 110 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120 Page 121 Page 122 Page 123 Page 124 Page 125 Page 126 Page 127 ->Page 128 Page 129 Page 130 Page 131 Page 132 Page 133 Page 134 Page 135 Page 136 Page 137 Page 138 Page 139 Page 140 Page 150 Page 160 Page 170 Page 180 Page 190 Page 200 Page 210 Page 220 Page 230 Page 240 Page 250 Page 260 Page 270 Page 280 Page 290 Page 300 Page 310