Extraterritoriality of Sanctions from a Corruption Lens The end of World War II shaped a new world order steering away from military confrontations, marking the birth of international initiatives that came to play a prominent role in the international diplomacy. These initiatives introduced international and regional organisations that took part in international politics (the United Nations, the European Union, etc.). These international organisations adopted many ways to preserve world peace and security. The notion of “sanctions” became one of their most popular tools relevant to the new world order, presenting an alternative to military interventions. The notion of sanctions started evolving ever since the end of World War II and became widely prevalent by the end of the Cold War in 1991. Sanctions enjoy a notable appreciation in the international negotiation contexts; they seem to be a recurring feature in the current political interactions between states, and they are nowadays one of the most discussed topics in the daily news. The basic logic of sanctions is disciplining states or regimes’ behaviours in case human rights are violated or international peace and security are endangered. It is noteworthy that there is no universally recognised definition of sanctions, but they can be referred to as: “Coercive economic measures taken against one or more countries to attempt to force a change in policies, or at least to demonstrate the sanctioning country’s opinion of another’s policies[1]”. Several scholars also tried to provide other definitions[i]. Article 41 of the UN charter, entitled specifically the Security Council to decide on the measures, including sanctions, to be employed to make their peacekeeping decisions effective. It is important to mention that the decisions taken by the Security Council are voted by the majority of the total 15 members. Which means that those decisions are taken jointly with other country members which – as a stand-alone argument – grants such decisions global trustworthiness. However, some countries have taken an aggressive step forward and started imposing unilateral targeted sanctions on other countries where human rights and security are perceived to be violated, or when their national interests are affected by threatening events happening elsewhere. Such interventions have a justified, yet, debatable legal basis deriving from “the effect principle[ii]” and the “universal jurisdiction principle[iii]” guaranteed as exceptions to the principle of territoriality in international law. These countries are managing to promulgate laws legitimizing their unilateral interventions around the world. Such sanctions became a primary tool to advance powerful countries’ foreign policies. The United States, for example, promulgated the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to target corruption and serious human rights abuse around the world. Sanctions from a corruption lens It goes without saying that corruption is a threat to international peace and security. Fighting corruption is at the centre of the global reform agendas, and corruption itself has become one of the risks faced by the global community according to the Global Risks Report of 2020 published by the World Economic Forum.[2] The consequences of corruption are numerous; however, its impact has gone beyond the countries’ borders as it started contributing – among others – to international threats, such as global organized crime networks, terrorist organisations, economic disruptions, and penetrable international security regimes. The international community is putting endless efforts to curb systemic corruption and to engage with severely corrupt regimes to achieve further mitigation. There are several international measures tailored to tackle corruption (i.e., UNCAC, FATF, FCPA, OECD convention, etc.). Recently, a widely recurring behaviour is exercised by powerful economies (also known as developing countries) translated by imposing unilateral targeted sanctions on countries where corruption is widespread and systemic. Unilateral sanctions usually target countries that are much smaller, economically weaker, and more politically unstable than the sanctioner. Kenya, Lebanon, Russia, Venezuela, Iran, Cuba, and many other countries are subject to unilateral sanctions. These sanctions comply to nationally-developed regimes punishing governments, people or entities committing grand corruption cases as well as human rights violations. Looking at this matter from a wide perspective, the most compelling evidence can be that these sanctions will succeed at mitigating corruption in those countries, eventually preserving human rights and security. However, in this power-driven and money-centric world, any form of extra-territorial intervention should always be doubted for the fear that countries’ interests (especially the powerful countries) are in constant alteration which highly impacts their own political agendas. The ever-changing economic and geopolitical interests have an important impact on the international power dynamics, governance, and global order. Therefore, developed countries possessing a tool as critical as imposing sanctions – at their convenience – without having internationally-recognized and well-defined standards (stipulated in the international law) for their use can be quite hazardous. Those unilateral sanctions can be abused for the pursuit of those countries’ own economic or political interests, which opposes to the idea of multilateral sanctions developed by the UN or other international organisation. Such a tool can serve as a severe pressure on countries to comply with agendas serving the powerful countries’ interests. Ironically enough, this suggests that developed countries are fighting corruption through aggressive means exercised on other countries for their own national interest. These countries are abusing the power given to them just by having a strong economy to intervene in other countries’ affairs to achieve, consequently, their own politico-economic interests. After all, this behaviour does not seem very different from the one that defines corruption. Unilateral sanctions – aside from promoting self-interest – violate many basic principles of international law. The legal equality of states, the principle of respect for the dignity of national sovereignty, alongside the non-intervention in the internal affairs of states, are core principles that seem to be disregarded almost completely by the enforcement of unilateral sanctions. Also, this type of sanctions breaches several core principles of the UN Charter, such as the principle of territorial integrity and duty to cooperate. The consequences of unilateral sanctions on the sanctioned countries’ national context are of a destructive nature. In fact, these sanctions cause more harm than
Extraterritoriality of Sanctions from a Corruption Lens
Women of Baky: Shaping Hospitality
The driving force behind Baky Hospitality Group’s success lies in the women behind the scenes. This past month, and every month, we celebrate women, and for Baky Hospitality this means we give a big thanks to all the ladies who help make the workplace better. The Group’s head office employs an equal ratio of males to females who all work harmonically together to make the business thrive. Some of the leading ladies we talked to are the following: The talk of the town is Roulla Soussou, who is the Marketing and PR Manager at Baky Hospitality. She manages the Baky Studio which is the team of marketers and designers who do all the work behind Baky Hospitality’s online and offline presence. Sara Naguib is the Culinary Manager and the leading female in the F&B team. She collaborates with Baky Hospitality’s Culinary Advisor and award-winning chef, Reif Othman, and is responsible of engineering all menus and calling the shots on each dish in all of the Group’s outlets: Sachi, Kazoku, Shinkō, and Lexie’s. Last but not least, Miriam Magdy, the Human Resources Manager at Baky Group has been with the company since the very beginning. With multiple years of experience, she is the most qualified person to recognize talent the moment she sees it. She is responsible for all ins-and-outs of running Baky Hospitality’s head office. Off-duty, Miriam is a mom of a 2-year-old toddler, and so, she happily juggles all roles in her life. We sat with the three main ladies at Baky Hospitality Group’s head office to ask them a few questions on how they balance work and life. Here’s what we’ve learned: SARA NAGUIB What advice would you give to people starting up in your field? I would say quality is key! Always remember to keep on top of your work, keep improving, and also think outside of the box. What drives you to do what you do? I love what I do, who doesn’t love food after all?! Other than that, at Baky Hospitality, we are a young and dynamic team who support and complete each other, and share the same vision. All of which makes me happy to get up and get to the office every morning. Can you name two essential components a leader must possess? A strong personality helps. I am very firm with my team, however, I always put everyone’s wellbeing into consideration. I would also say a leader should be emotionally intelligent to be able to deal with all kinds of characters and circumstances. Did you always want to work in Hospitality? How did you get to where you are today? Food tourism has always been my passion. I love to explore new countries and cultures and with it, new flavors! At first, I worked in my family’s hospitality business before deciding to join Baky Hospitality. I wanted to get more into the food side of the business and so I started from the bottom and worked my way up to where I am today. It was a long and eventful way which taught me a lot and gave me many opportunities, including working with talented chefs. It is a never-ending learning process and I look forward to new experiences and with it, new lessons. MIRIAM MAGDY What helped shape the woman you are today? They say, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. I believe that to be totally true. I joined Baky Hospitality in its early days, at the time I was the first HR member and had a huge amount of workload to deal with. No one is born with management skills; you learn as you move forward, and so, I was taught by dealing with a multitude of circumstances and people. What is the best advice that you received, both personally and professionally? Listen and process before taking any decision. I think listening is very important, not just to others but also to yourself. I was told this by a family member at a very young age; at the time, I didn’t understand it, and then one day I was faced with a big decision and almost like an epiphany, I heard these words in my head. Very often I feel a lot of people get through life by talking but forget to listen, and so this would be my advice to anyone. Just slow down and listen. Can you name two essential components a leader must possess? “Be humble” is our company motto, and mine too. I believe a leader should know their people enough to direct them in the right way, support them when they’re stuck but, above all, the one who leads should lead with humbleness. Did you always want to work in hospitality? Yes! I am very passionate about the F&B sector. I realized this while being at my previous job. I was very happy, but not completely fulfilled with what I was doing. It was by pure coincidence when one day I found out that the missing part was the hospitality element. I thought to myself, “Why don’t I give that a try?”, and I’ve never looked back ever since! I feel thankful for being here and being part of an ever-evolving industry in Egypt. ROULLA SOUSSOU What helped shape the woman you are today? The need for work to provide for myself. I learnt that right after graduating from high-school. My parents always made sure that both my sister and I were raised not only using our potential for our sake, but also for other people’s sake. That’s very important to have as a backbone. Besides that, I would say I was blessed to have been brought up and taught what to do and what not to do based on ethics and integrity rather than gender norms – which is usually the case in Egypt. What is the best advice that you received, both personally and professionally? I haven’t
Mastercard and Uber Extend their Partnership
Uber’s long-term partnership with Mastercard continues to grow with a new strategic initiative focusing on digital payments and advancing financial inclusions which will be facilitated by Mastercard across the Middle East and Africa (MEA). As a regional first, the partnership with Mastercard will enable Uber to drive digitization across their business operations, leveraging Mastercard’s single infrastructure to meet all types of payments needs across Uber Rides, Uber Eats, Uber Pass, and Uber for Business. It is intended that the partnership will boost cashless payments, drive digital payment acceptance, reward loyalty, while supporting Uber’s continued social impact collaboration. The Economy 2021 report released by Mastercard notes that the economic impact of COVID-19 has introduced permanent changes in digital consumer spending habits, growth of online banking, fintech disruption and opportunities to boost financial inclusion. Through the partnership, both companies can bridge the financial inclusion gap through a broad range of efforts. Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President Market Development, Mastercard, MEA explains: “Mastercard continues to partner with digital players across the value chain to build a more connected world. Enabling secure, immediate movement of money for individuals in the gig economy workers and customers is especially vital as we support economic recovery efforts. Through our growing partnership, we are enabling the company’s long-term business growth as a result of improved operational efficiencies, driving greater financial inclusion and innovation across the region, and ultimately boosting the growth of digital economy in MEA.” Last year, Uber in South Africa launched a product called Uber Pass, which will now be available across most cities in MEA, with Mastercard becoming a key distribution partner to help drive adoption. Tino Waked, Regional General Manager, Middle East & Africa, says: “This is the largest partnership for us across MEA, and we are proud to be working together to bring key financial solutions to driver-partners across MEA. Driver’s well-being is a top priority and putting opportunities they want within reach is important to us.” This new partnership builds on existing work between the two organizations. In a joint initiative last year, Mastercard committed 120,000 free trips and meals to those supporting communities across the Middle East and Africa, which was facilitated through Uber. This strategic partnership between Mastercard and Uber spans across the region and through key partnerships, supported cities, hospitals, front line workers and marginalized communities with free rides and meals. While vaccines are a reality, communities are still in need of various support. Mastercard and Uber remain committed to helping people around the world navigate these challenging times and stand ready to support cities whether it be logistics or free rides. The work undertaken with Uber plays a key role in advancing Mastercard’s worldwide commitment to financial inclusion and the company’s pledge to bring a total of 1 billion people, 50 million micro and small businesses, and 25 million women entrepreneurs into the digital economy by 2025.
PepsiCo and Ajialouna’s Tomooh Marks 16 Years of Supporting Youth
PepsiCo Inc., in partnership with Ajialouna, a local non-profit organization, announced the launch of its Tomooh scholarship program for 2021, celebrating 16 years of supporting disadvantaged Lebanese youths in pursuing higher education. The program was initially launched in 2006 after Saad Abdul-Latif, the then PepsiCo Chief Executive Officer for Asia, Middle East & Africa, committed the sum of $1 million for educating Arab youth. To date, the total contribution is more than double what was originally committed, empowering disadvantaged youths aged 18- 22 across the country by promoting social development through education with partial academic scholarships to pursue their higher education. Every year, around 220 students benefit from this scholarship program. This year, PepsiCo’s previous annual scholarship of USD 200,000 was scaled up to USD 250,000 to reach a wider number of students, given the challenging and multiple crises Lebanon is currently weathering. “Helping students for the 16th year in a row is an accomplishment we are very proud of, particularly in these extremely difficult times as unemployment soars and many parents find themselves unable to meet tuition fees,” said Riad Al Mawass, Senior Franchise Director for Levant and North Africa, adding: “We are working hard to keep this program going to secure as many education opportunities as possible for deserving students in order to fulfill a better future not only for themselves, but also for their families and Lebanon. Tomooh has been this successful so far because of the support of Ajialouna.” Through Tomooh, PepsiCo and Ajialouna extend their support to students in different regions across Lebanon, irrespective of their nationality, gender, race or special needs, with similar programs now also being launched in Egypt and Jordan. Dr. Lena Dada, President of the Ajialouna Association, stressed the value that Tomooh had brought to the social wellbeing of the Lebanese community over the past years. “Today, this program has gained even more importance because of the economic standstill. We see that working parents are getting laid off or their salaries drastically slashed every day, increasing the need for such generous scholarships.” Dr. Dada said. To know more about Ajialouna, visit this link.
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