In view of the various corruption scandals in its sphere of influence, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wants to oblige its members to adhere to revised “ethical principles”. This was reported by the industry service insidethegames. com on Thursday. The written declarations of consent are therefore mandatory until the IOC Commissions’ meetings on 5 December 2005. The Commission’s proposal will be submitted to the Council of Ministers by 31 November at the headquarters of the Ringe Organisation in Lausanne.
The stricter rules of conduct apply to ethically sensitive areas. These include conflicts of interest, the acceptance of gifts and the use of tickets to competitions at the Olympic Games.
The rule package is presumably a response to the many scandals surrounding IOC members in the recent past. The IOC has been criticized for some time for its hesitant approach to dealing with affairs and suspected corruption. The accusations are aimed at the fact that the organisation hardly reveals any initiative in investigating scandals and usually acts only under pressure from investigating authorities.
Just last Wednesday, Brazil’s former Olympic boss Carlos Arthur Nuzman was charged with corrupt practices at the 2016 Olympic Games in his country (Rio de Janeiro). According to the Brazilian police, further ex-members of the IOC are involved in the affair.
In Rio last year, former IOC executive member Patrick Hickey (Ireland) was also temporarily arrested during the ongoing Olympic competitions on suspicion of illegal business with Olympic tickets. In addition, investigative authorities in several countries have for some time been investigating the circumstances surrounding the award of the 2020 Summer Games to Tokyo.