Honorary consuls are "politically exposed persons" (PEPs) – YES, NOW, DON'T KNOW?
27/07/2023
Some foreign governments have chosen to classify honorary consuls as "politically exposed persons" (PEPs). However, most jurisdictions' rules [including Jersey] are silent and leave it to regulated forms to decide.
An honorary consul is a diplomatic position that comes with legal protections, travel benefits and political connections unavailable to most people
With these privileges, ProPublica and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists found that corrupt, violent and dangerous honorary consul appointees have turned a system meant to leverage the work of honorary citizens into a perilous form of rogue diplomacy that has threatened the rule of law around the world.
For example:-
- More than x150 current and former consuls have been accused or convicted of tax evasion, fraud, bribery, corruption or money laundering.
- Nearly x60 tied to drug or weapons offences,
- At least x20 others to violent crimes and
- x10 to environmental abuses.
- The United States and other governments have sanctioned x30 honorary consuls;
- x9 have been linked to terrorist groups by law enforcement and governments.
Once accused, consuls invoke their status to avoid prosecution, police inquiries or fines.
Comsure, therefore, says Honorary consuls are "POLITICALLY EXPOSED PERSONS" (PEPS)
Read here
Watch Here
- The Global Threat of Rogue Diplomacy: How honorary consuls leverage perks, wield political power amid reports of wrongdoing.
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As well as owning and publishing Comsure's copyrighted works, Comsure wishes to use the copyright-protected works of others. To do so, Comsure is applying for exemptions in the UK copyright law. There are certain very specific situations where Comsure is permitted to do so without seeking permission from the owner. These exemptions are in the copyright sections of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended)[www.gov.UK/government/publications/copyright-acts-and-related-laws]. Many situations allow for Comsure to apply for exemptions. These include 1] Non-commercial research and private study, 2] Criticism, review and reporting of current events, 3] the copying of works in any medium as long as the use is to illustrate a point. 4] no posting is for commercial purposes [payment]. (for a full list of exemptions, please read here www.gov.uk/guidance/exceptions-to-copyright]. Concerning the exceptions, Comsure will acknowledge the work of the source author by providing a link to the source material. Comsure claims no ownership of non-Comsure content. The non-Comsure articles posted on the Comsure website are deemed important, relevant, and newsworthy to a Comsure audience (e.g. regulated financial services and professional firms [DNFSBs]). Comsure does not wish to take any credit for the publication, and the publication can be read in full in its original form if you click the articles link that always accompanies the news item. Also, Comsure does not seek any payment for highlighting these important articles. If you want any article removed, Comsure will automatically do so on a reasonable request if you email info@comsuregroup.com.