This is a research work, developed by Franklin Licuy and Lizeth Terán, students of the ISEV Virtual Education Institute, in order to contribute to the growth and development of the Foreign Trade career in Ecuador.
Code of ethics for professionals in foreign trade members of the ANPC, approved by its board of directors at a meeting from July 10 to 12, 2006, in Atacames province of Esmeraldas.
Considering:
1) That the Foreign Trade professional is a professional of free exercise and depending on his private or public function, his duty as such is to protect the interests of his clients with strict adherence to legal and moral norms;
2) That the union action developed by the professionals of Foreign Trade through the national or international organizations that bring them together require the dignity of their professional work through actions based on principles of general application and indisputable, for representing substantial values for the perfection of the civil society in which they work;
3) Resolved by the Board of Directors at its Atacames meeting, from July 10 to 12, 2006.
This Professional Code of Ethics applicable to Ecuador's Foreign Trade professionals is sanctioned.
ART. 1 - The purpose of this Code is to regulate the conduct of the Foreign Trade Professional in the exercise of his professional activity, considering the general principles of law and customs of universal acceptance.
The Foreign Trade professional in compliance with the prescriptions of this Code will proceed according to their loyal knowledge and understanding, with fair criteria, avoiding misleading interpretations, in order to find a situation favorable to their interests and that may harm the treasury., your colleagues and your clients.
ART. 2º - The foreign trade professional must maintain professional honor and dignity, acting at all times with a high concept of the mission incumbent on him, with a high level of vision and with absolute correctness.
ART. 3º - The foreign trade professional must act with honesty and good faith. It will reject fraudulent acts and will refrain from carrying out those that hinder the efficient administration on the part of the Customs Service or other organizations that intervene in foreign trade operations.
ART. 4º - In his professional relations with the public powers, the professional of Foreign Trade, without compromising his personal dignity or the decorum that his office demands, will maintain a respectful attitude towards the officials or those who are invested with a high representative hierarchy.
ART. 5º - The foreign trade professional must respect the
legal provisions, comply with them and enforce them.
No professional may support initiatives aimed at obtaining the sanction or repeal of laws, decrees and regulations that refer to the profession, without the knowledge of the directive authorities of the professional representative body, or those that, by express mandate, may be empowered to understand the question.
ART. 6º - The foreign trade professional will have the right to provide their professional services to all who request it. But you must win your clientele on the assumptions of professional ability, efficiency and honesty. Therefore, it will scrupulously refrain from:
a) To improperly request customers or carry out any unfair practice to obtain it.
b) Make demonstrations demonstrating their competence when a purpose is implicit in them that constitutes an obvious disregard for the capacity of others.
ART. 7º - No foreign trade professional should allow his professional services or his name to be used to facilitate or make possible the exercise of the profession by those who are not legally authorized to exercise it.
The Foreign Trade professional who signs declarations in whose drafting, preparation and processing does not intervene personally or through his professional study, or who lends his intervention in the customs office only to comply with legal requirements, seriously violates the dignity of his profession.
ART. 8º - Between the professionals of Foreign Trade there must be reciprocal respect and fraternity that exalts the profession. They will carefully refrain from malicious or insulting expressions and from alluding to personal antecedents or situations that affect their colleagues.
ART. 9º - If one or more of them are victims of an act that is truly considered detrimental to legitimate professional interests, they must find in all other colleagues the support that the circumstances warrant.
ART. 10º - No foreign trade professional should attempt to obtain the services of an employee of another professional colleague, but may deal with candidates who present themselves on their own initiative or in response to notices, provided that they are aware of the fact to the current or former employer colleague..
ART. 11º - The foreign trade professional must abide by the tariff approved by the competent body, and will not charge lower fees than those established there.
ART. 12º - It is contrary to the ethical norms the habitual offer on the part of the professionals of Foreign Trade of their professional services in such conditions that it can be presumably founded that the operation costs are greater than the fees that are charged. Said activity goes directly to the detriment of other agents and poses a particular danger to the prestige and dignity of the profession.
ART. 13º - The professional of Foreign Trade must keep confidentiality about the businesses of the people who have contracted their services. The professional secrecy will be absolute and will yield only to the need for personal defense or to the request made by the competent authority.
ART. 14º - All foreign trade professionals must respect the agreements validly adopted by the organizations of the trade union association, especially in matters that relate to ethical conduct.
Court of honor and procedure
ART. 15º - The questions that arise in relation to the fulfillment of the ethical norms of the professionals of Foreign Trade, will be known by a court of honor, provided that the national legislation does not prohibit it. This court will have jurisdiction to resolve situations that are not expressly contemplated in this body of rules, considering the principles and customs referred to in article 1.
The court will also have powers to hear the requests submitted by associates if they have suffered a measure imposed by the authority, in order to protect their professional prestige.
ART. 16º - The Court of Honor will be integrated in the manner provided by the current statutes of the respective association.
ART. 17º - The procedure of the Court of Honor will be established by the competent body of the respective association and must duly guarantee the accused Foreign Trade professional the opportunity to formulate their defense and render the evidence they deem necessary for their defense.
ART. 18º - It is recommended that the APCE member national corporations establish the following sanctions to be applied by the Court of Honor, taking into account the circumstances of each specific case:
1. Verbal warning.
2. Written warning, recorded in the minutes of the board meeting in which the sanction imposed is known.
3. Written warning with internal publicity, which will be made through the union newsletters issued by the association.
4. Written warning with internal publicity made in the manner indicated in the previous number, and communication to the National Director of Customs in which he is aware of the sanction applied and its cause.
5. The sanction indicated in No. 4 of this article and suspension of social rights for a period of one to six months.
6. Expulsion from the association, with internal publicity carried out in the manner indicated in No. 4 and communication to the National Director of Customs.
7. Expulsion from the association, with advertising.
ART. 19º - All professionals of Foreign Trade, at the time of entering the respective national association, must commit to respect the professional code of ethics and accept to be judged by the Court of Honor in accordance with the established procedure.
