good governance practices for the protection of human rights

However, the effort to reduce police corruption met with significant obstacles
and ultimately failed. One of the primary responsibilities of the La Paz police was
patrolling the public market: collecting rents, maintaining health standards, and
monitoring the accuracy of weights and measures. Over time, a culture developed
in which police officers boosted their salaries through kickbacks from the
stallholders. Corruption in the police force resulted in lower city revenues, the
violation of health norms and the cheating of consumers through false weights
and measures.
However, the plan to fire corrupt police officers and their supervisors was sabotaged.
Police families resisted the new policy. Also, the stallholders did not
welcome a change in the status quo, fearing even worse practices in the future.
Neither stallholders nor residents perceived corruption as affecting their daily
lives. The mayor and his team had failed to communicate to the public the tangible
benefits of reduced police corruption: lower taxes, fair weights and measures for
consumers, and safe food for families and children. They had not conducted adequate
research to understand which facets of the public market were important
to citizens and to then communicate the value of the anti-corruption drive as a
means of achieving these goals. As a result, the plan was not implemented as the
mayor was voted out of office in the next elections.
Impact on human rights and challenges
The mayor of La Paz and his team made great strides. During their five years in
office, corruption was greatly reduced and foreign donors contributed funds to
increase the salaries of employees. Importantly, city revenues and investment in
public works increased tenfold. As a result of higher city revenues, the delivery
of municipal services improved.
However, questions regarding the sustainability of these achievements emerged
when Ronald MacLean-Abaroa was not re-elected and his successors dismantled
some of his anti-corruption initiatives and undermined effective administration
via nepotism and political appointments. By 1995, corruption had almost returned
to pre-1985 levels. It became evident that the anti-corruption efforts of
the late 1980s were not supported by a system of checks and balances backed
by society at large. There was inadequate civic education on the consequences
of corruption, which contributed to the low public demand for accountability.
Greater input from the public might have created the checks and balances required
for sustainable reforms. For example, professional groups, the media and
neighbourhood associations might have been possible supporters.
However, it is important to emphasize that the battle against corruption is a longterm
process and that it takes many years to build a civic culture which values
accountability and transparency. Ronald MacLean-Abaroa was the first democratically
elected mayor of the city for 40 years and, although voted out of office
in 1991, he was re-elected in 1996 on a reform platform. By that time, neighbourhood
associations and civil actors were stronger and better able to bolster
anti-corruption efforts through their work as monitors.
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