How does the Convention define the bribery of foreign public officials?
The Convention defines the bribery of foreign public officials as the voluntary giving (promising or offering) of something of value to a foreign public official in order to obtain or retain business or other improper advantage in the conduct of international business. Bribery of domestic public officials is already a crime in the countries that are party to the Convention, as well as in most countries of the world. The Convention focuses on the person who offers, promises, or gives a bribe — “active” bribery; not with the recipient of the bribe – so-called “passive” bribery. A straight-forward case of bribery under the Convention can be illustrated as follows: A company officer from a country participating in the Convention (Country A) participates in a public tender in a foreign country (Country B). The officer meets with public officials from Country B and offers, promises, or pays, a substantial “amount” to “assist” the public officials in making their decision to award the office
