AMMAN — According to a Jordanian official,
the government recently dismissed six honorary consuls in foreign countries,
including millionaire businessman Shucry Kafie, who represented the Kingdom in
his home country of Honduras, the International Consortium of Investigative
Journalists (ICIJ) reported.
اضافة اعلان
The move was made in the wake of the “
Shadow Diplomats” investigation published by ICIJ and the non-profit newsroom
ProPublica last year, which revealed questionable dealings by at least 500
global honorary consuls.
The investigation relied on the reports of 160
journalists from 46 countries who identified special diplomats involved in
corruption cases and exploiting funds and status to threaten international
security and promote personal gain.
Under the honorary consul system, citizens with
special connections, experience, and influence volunteer from their home
countries to promote the interests of foreign governments, particularly in
places that lack an embassy or consulate.
The honorary diplomats are afforded special
privileges under an international treaty, including, at times, immunity from
lawsuits and free cross-border movement of consular items without inspection,
ICIJ said.
One out of manyIn the case of Kafie, who had represented Jordan
in Honduras for over 30 years,
reports obtained through the investigation showed that the millionaire had taken advantage of his consular privileges.
“In 2016, a judge cited Kafie’s diplomatic status
as honorary consul in allowing the millionaire to avoid detention after an
arrest for fraud,” ICIJ reported.
Kafie denied the claims, having “previously told
ICIJ and ProPublica that the criminal charges, which were dismissed, were
politically motivated”, the consortium wrote.
Nevertheless, the Kingdom terminated his role as
its honorary consul to Honduras.
Jordan is just one of many countries to conduct
reviews and implement dismissals of honorary consuls following the Shadow
Diplomats investigation.
According to the ICIJ, Latvia, Israel, Brazil,
Spain, and several other countries have reformed or canceled their honorary
consul systems in response to evidence provided by journalists in the report.
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