The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) announced the ousted Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad as the 2024 winner of its “Person of the Year” award.
Since 2012, OCCRP’s “Person of the Year” award has singled out those who do the most to wreak havoc around the world through organized crime and corruption. The winner is chosen by an expert panel of judges across civil society, academia, and journalism.
Assad’s regime was characterized by centralized control, suppression of dissent, and a reliance on a powerful security apparatus. His forces were accused of widespread human rights abuses, including torture, murder, the use of chemical weapons, mass detentions, and the targeting of civilians.
Financed by production of the Captagon street drug and other forms of organized crime, such as human and cigarette smuggling, antiquities theft, and the arms trade, Assad’s regime earned billions of dollars to maintain his brutal authoritarian rule, while spreading violence, drugs, and criminality throughout the region.
“In addition to being a dictator like his father before him, Assad added unimaginable dimensions of crime and corruption, ruining the lives of countless people even outside the border of his own country,” said Daraj.com co-founder Alia Ibrahim, who was a judge in the contest this year. “The political, economic, and social damage caused by Assad, both in Syria and in the region, will take decades to overcome.”
“Lifetime Non-Achievement Award” for Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo
For the first time in the contest’s 13-year history, the judges have awarded a special “Lifetime Non-Achievement Award.” The prize goes to Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, one of the longest serving dictators in the world. After leading a coup in 1979 to seize power from his uncle, Obiang has brutally repressed any dissent with unlawful arrests, forced disappearances, and torture.
“Through fear, repression, and corruption, Teodoro Obiang has created a dynasty of wealth and impunity,” said Ghanaian investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who was a judge in the contest this year. “His dictatorial tendencies are being rapidly replicated by leaders across the African continent, with coup leaders today looking up to him as a godfather, harboring similar ambitions to become godfathers of corruption like him.”
Both Assad and Obiang are examples of longtime dictatorial regimes, in which corruption plays a critical role.
“Corruption is a fundamental part of capturing states and making autocratic governments powerful,” said OCCRP Publisher Drew Sullivan. “These corrupt governments violate human rights, manipulate elections, plunder natural resources, and ultimately create conflict from their inherent instability. Their only future is violent collapse or bloody revolution.”
Kenyan President William Ruto Received the Most Votes
An unprecedented number of people — more than 40,000 — wrote in to nominate Kenyan President William Ruto for “Person of the Year.” Fueled by a contentious finance bill proposal, youth unemployment, and rage at their corrupt government, young Kenyans held demonstrations for weeks this past June and July, demanding that Ruto step down. Security forces responded with tear gas, water cannons, arrests, and bullets — many people were killed, injured, or went missing following the protests.
The judges acknowledged the importance of public interest and outrage at corruption. However, since the award is given to the person who has done “the most to wreak havoc around the world through organized crime and corruption,” they ultimately chose Assad as the winner. Creating chaos for Syrians, Syria’s neighbors, the broader region, and the many countries affected by his criminality pushed him into the top slot.
For more information, visit OCCRP's "Person of the Year" page or contact [email protected].