Dear Supporter,

At The Sentry, we’re working hard to make sure that those benefiting from violence are shut out of the international financial system. This week, I’m excited to share with you some recent updates on this front. 

First, in major news, the UK launched its Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions regime yesterday, a new sanctions regime that targets individuals involved in serious corruption. The Sentry has actively advocated for the UK to adopt this policy tool, including in this December briefing. The anti-corruption sanctions regime is a potent tool for the UK to combat corruption-related illicit financial flows and it serves as a sister program to the UK’s Global Human Rights Sanctions regime that launched last year.

A first round of designations against 22 individuals was also announced at the regime’s launch, including against Sudanese businessman Ashraf Seed Ahmed Hussein Ali, widely known as Al-Cardinal. After we first published our investigative report on Al-Cardinal in 2019, the US took swift action to sanction him under the Global Magnitsky Act. The Sentry, having urged the UK government to sanction Al Cardinal, especially given his extensive ties to the country, applauds his designation.

We also have three great reads to share with you on the topic of corruption in the US, the Netherlands, and South Sudan:

Here in the US, the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act is up for renewal in Congress. The Sentry’s General Counsel Brad Brooks-Rubin testified in front of the House Tom Lantos Commission as part of the Act’s reauthorization process, and in a new Just Security mini-series, he shares how the network-focused GloMag sanctions have been a key to progress in the fight against corruption and human rights abuses and why Congress must reauthorize and expand upon the Act to keep up the drumbeat of pressure.

Read “Fighting the ‘International Thief Thief’ with Global Magnitsky Sanctions”

Back across the Atlantic, The Sentry was commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs to evaluate and address illicit finance risks to the Dutch financial sector from corruption in the Great Lakes region. In a new op-ed, Sentry Investigator Michelle Kendler-Kretsch shares how nefarious business operators are exploiting the Netherlands’ business-friendly tax and regulatory system and what can be done to stop them.

Read “Why Are Corrupt Businesspeople Going Dutch?”

For another perspective on corruption, The Sentry’s Deputy Director of Policy Brian Adeba looks into the mismanagement and lack of transparency and accountability within South Sudan’s health sector. These pervasive problems have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, urgently highlighting the need to tackle major problems in the sector.

Read “What the curious case of COVID prevention cards says about South Sudan’s health crisis”

Thanks to your support, we’re seeing real impact from our investigations and advocacy efforts around the world. April was a busy month for us, and we’re excited to continue sharing with you more of our progress.

Until next time,

John Prendergast
Co-Founder of The Sentry