Transparency International: Every fifth Belarusian paid bribe over past year
belsat.eu, following transparency.org
22 November 2016, 23:27
Transparency International, a global movement against corruption, has interviewed nearly 60,000 persons in 42 countries of Europe and Central Asia for its new report, part of a regional series from our Global Corruption Barometer.
Their findings show that few people think that their government has done enough to fight corruption in politics. Over a quarter of citizens see politicians, government officials and business executives as highly corrupt, and nearly three in five citizens think that wealthy individuals have too much influence over government decisions.
According to the survey, bribery is still common, particularly in the CIS countries. Nearly a third of public service users in the CIS have paid a bribe (30 per cent) in the past year (20% in Belarus) and bribery is highest in Tajikistan where this rises to 50 per cent of service users.
Reporting corruption or refusing to pay bribes are the most effective actions people think they can take (18 and 20%). Reporting corruption is seen as particularly effective in the EU (24%). Still 27% of citizens in Europe and Central Asia are resigned to the fact that people can do nothing. The main reason more people don’t come forward to report corruption is that they are afraid of the consequences (30 %). Furthermore, less than a half of people say that they think it is socially acceptable to report corruption in their country (38%).
22 November 2016, 23:27
Their findings show that few people think that their government has done enough to fight corruption in politics. Over a quarter of citizens see politicians, government officials and business executives as highly corrupt, and nearly three in five citizens think that wealthy individuals have too much influence over government decisions.
One in three pollees believes that corruption or bribery is one of the biggest problems in their country, the organization reports. Citizens in Kosovo, Spain and Moldova are the most likely to think this, with two thirds rating corruption as a major problem (from 65 to 67%) In Belarus, only 14% of interviewees think so. 22% consider the Belarusian authorities to be corrupt; 45% of respondents give a poor assessment of combating corruption in the countries.
According to the survey, bribery is still common, particularly in the CIS countries. Nearly a third of public service users in the CIS have paid a bribe (30 per cent) in the past year (20% in Belarus) and bribery is highest in Tajikistan where this rises to 50 per cent of service users.
Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Serbia and Ukraine are rated poorly by their citizens across all of the key questions in the Global Corruption Barometer survey. Neighbouring Ukraine (86%) and Russia (62%) are among those having very severe corruption problems.
Reporting corruption or refusing to pay bribes are the most effective actions people think they can take (18 and 20%). Reporting corruption is seen as particularly effective in the EU (24%). Still 27% of citizens in Europe and Central Asia are resigned to the fact that people can do nothing. The main reason more people don’t come forward to report corruption is that they are afraid of the consequences (30 %). Furthermore, less than a half of people say that they think it is socially acceptable to report corruption in their country (38%).
