Corruption is a well-known blight on daily lives of Hondurans: from the fear that organized crime brings to daily life to the looting of public funds by corrupt officials or simply the demand for a bribe from a police officer about to give us a ticket. We all suffer in different ways, but that doesn’t mean we as citizens are powerless.
New technology and new partnerships are coming together that allow ordinary people to report corruption when they see it and have faith that the authorities will do something about it.
Dilo Aquí Honduras is a new mobile phone app, developed by the Transparency International chapter in Venezuela that is now available in Honduras through Transparency International’s chapter la Asociación para una Sociedad más Justa (ASJ) in collaboration with the Ministerio Público and the support of the British Embassy.
Advancing the fight against corruption is the responsibility of each one of us, and now with this app we have no excuse not to fight this scourge.
Yazmina Banegas, who helps victims of corruption at the Advocacy and Legal Advice Center
The idea is simple. If you see corruption taking place, record it on the app, in words and with pictures, and it gets automatically sent to the Ministerio Público and the Transparency International Advocacy and Legal Advice Center. At the center victims and witnesses of corruption can get information and assistance with taking their complaints forward.
Transparency International staff will review how the Ministerio Público deals with the information. Reporting can be anonymous or you can give personal information but that information is only accessible to the people dealing with your case. Security is key so people do not have to fear.
The app is free and available on both Apple and Android phones.
In 2012 a survey showed that one in four Hondurans paid a bribe for a public service. If they are faced with a similar situation today and had the app on the phone, they could report it.
It’s already working in Venezuela where from March 2015 there have already been 1,382 cases reported. Of these more than 948 have been investigated and 87 are closed. Soon it will be used in Guatemala too. In the first few days in Honduras, we have already received 36 reports and are busy working on them.
Citizens have a role to play in fighting corruption. Using this app is a safe way to become part of the solution.
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