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Summary

Sanctions

Anti-corruption sanctions are a foreign policy tool used by governments to freeze the assets of designated individuals and/or entities and deny their entry into the sanctioning government's country.

An individual or entity that has been selected by the country's relevant authorities to be sanctioned is called a designated person.

There are various anti-corruption sanctions regimes, with different definitions of corruption and varying scopes as to what illicit activities they cover. The first to be developed was the Global Magnitsky Act, implemented by the US in 2016, which covers human rights abuses as well as corruption. The UK's Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regime was implemented in April 2021, and Australia and Canada also have dedicated anti-corruption sanctions.

Notable figures who have been designated for corruption include Teodoro “Teodorin” Obiang, vice-president of Equatorial Guinea, under the UK Global Anti-Corruption Sanctions Regime, and Israeli international businessman Dan Gertler under the US Global Magnitsky regime.

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Sarkozy, Nicholas: case study

Former French president convicted of corruption in relation to political financing in 2021.

Already known for his lavish tastes and celebrity lifestyle, Sarkozy's presidency was dubbed “bling-bling” by his critics. However, in the years after leaving office he faced several allegations relating to corruption, including influence peddling and illegal campaign financing.

In March 2021, Sarkozy was sentenced to three years in prison (two years suspended) for corruption and influence peddling, while in September of the same year he was sentenced to one year under house arrest for ille-gal campaign financing. He remained under investigation for claims that he received money for his 2007 campaign from Libyan dictator Colonel Gaddafi to the tune of €50 million and faced further allegations of influence peddling for a Russian insurance firm in 2019.

Throughout, Sarkozy maintained his innocence and was prepared to appeal against the convictions. His wife Carla Bruni publicly condemned the case and Sarkozy himself has since accused the judiciary of “hound-ing” him.

In the first conviction, Sarkozy was on trial with his lawyer, Thierry Herzog, and senior judge Gilbert Azibert. He was accused of attempting to bribe Azibert for confidential information about a judicial inquiry. The inquiry was of interest to Sarkozy because it was investigating whether he had accepted illicit funds from L’Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt to support his 2007 presidential election campaign. Sarkozy was ultimately cleared of wrongdoing in this instance.