Zee Beam News

Dec. 07, 2007 - Kommersant - Transparency International released yesterday its Global Corruption Barometer Survey based on the polls in 60 countries worldwide. Russia is in the middle of rating, somewhere close to Luxembourg, Malaysia, Turkey and Panama. Of interest is that, in addition to the police and courts, the Russians currently view educational and healthcare institutions as the most corrupt establishments in the country. “Unlike other countries, where bribing is the destiny of poor, the rich pay very much as well in Russia, giving bribes for more comfort life,” said Elena Panfilova, chief of Russia’s office of Transparency International. According to the survey, exactly the persons with high income prevailed amid the respondents saying they bribed officials of law enforcement bodies and educational institutions (40 percent and 19 percent respectively). “Moreover, this year, the educational and healthcare institutions have neared traditional leaders in corruption – the police and courts… Services to the population are still a grand problem. As a rule, the people pay not for the service itself but to get it, to execute the documents,” Panfilova pointed out. Another trend is the growing pessimism of the nation in respect of the battle against corruption. In 2007, 33 percent said the government was rather inefficient than efficient when opposing corruption vs. 22 percent in 2006. Some 40 percent were sure the corruption level would remain as high as today in the nearest three years. “Quite a few of respondents faced the bribes at least once and the feeling of resentment lasts all life,” commented Pavel Krasheninnikov, head of State Duma’s Committee for Legislation. “Roots of corruption are mostly in our heads. Going to doctors, teachers with a box of sweets is the custom of people rather than of bureaucrats.”