Partytake conversion

Transparency International accuses political parties of corruption among Russian institutions of the authorities, political parties occupy the second place in corruption. In the first place - traditionally a law enforcement system. Third place in terms of the size of the bribes received - at the parliament and the judicial system. Such data is contained in the report of the International Organization of Transparency International for 2005.

The non -governmental organization Transparency International (TI) was created in 1993, has departments in 90 countries. TOI, together with Gallup International, summed up the results of the outgoing year in the field of corruption and bribery. The global survey on this subject was conducted in 69 countries, including in Russia, 55 thousand respondents were interviewed. The final report was published on December 9.

With an envelope to the party leader

According to TI, political parties are the most corrupt institution of power in these countries. Party leaders more often than other government officials convert their position to bills. Moreover, if in 2004 the parties were called respondents with the most bribery institution in 36 countries out of 62, then this year already in 45 countries out of 69. The most acute this problem is in Latin America and Southeast Asia.

In Russia, the picture is almost the same. In the first place in corruption is the police. The parties are only on the second, but the gap between them is insignificant and makes up the tenth of a percentage (see table). In this sense, Russia does not go in a special way, but is experiencing global trends. Probably, the strengthening of party corruption in the perception of fellow citizens is the main result of the transition to a proportional electoral system that is unimportant for the majority of the population. And at all the controllability of the country not at all declared by the authorities in the face of a terrorist threat.

Two leaders are closed at once by two structures - the judicial system and parliament. The last of the institutes, by the way, is difficult to separate from political activity. At least from those parties that are represented in the State Duma.

$ 129 per bribes

Refined Russians believe that it is political life that is most affected by the greatest influence of corruption - 3.4 points (out of four maximum), business - 3.1 points. Private life, oddly enough, is also subject to corruption - 2.1 points. The Russian family spends $ 129 per year. In Ukraine, this figure is $ 160. He is even more in Serbia -171 dollars, and the leader is Lithuania - 195 dollars.

A distinctive feature of Russians: they are not asked to give a bribe, but they give. This was admitted by 60% of respondents. A third of Russians give a bribe only when they are asked about it. However, another is more important. When asked if they paid a bribe to avoid problems with the authorities, 50% of respondents answered in the affirmative. "No" answered 42%. In disappointe for the Russian authorities and another answer: 53% of respondents "paid a bribe to get a service that is supposed by law."

Judging by the survey, about a third of Russians do not expect that the situation with corruption in the country will improve in the next three years. Less than a third believe that the level has only “increased” slightly in recent years. But 39% of respondents are convinced that this level has "much increased." Optimists who believe that corruption has "much reduced", make up only 1% of respondents. At the same time, 26% did not notice in this matter neither deteriorations nor improvements.

Bribed state machine

The high corruption of parties in the minds of Russians is explained by several reasons. Sometimes subjective. “Firstly, the sources of financing political parties are not clear to people and this circumstance gives rise to doubts,” says Kirill Kabanov, a member of the board of the Center for Anti -Corruption Studies, Kirill Kabanov. “Secondly, many respondents do not see the difference between legal lobbying interests in parliament and such a criminal act as corruption.”

“The Russians, unfortunately, are in the list of those who give pessimistic estimates regarding the prospects for the fight against corruption,” the director of the Center for Anti -Corruption Studies of Transpenser Internet - Russia Elena Panfilova told Gazeta. -Citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (40%) and Russia (50%) are most evaluated by the possibility of changes for the better. "On pessimism, we are on a par with citizens of Costa Rica, Ecuador, India, Nicaragua and Philippines. This is explained simply:" Citizens see that nothing changes in the state machine, it is still tuning to extorting. "

Only in six countries, Elena Panfilova notes, it was expressed that the level of corruption has decreased somewhat over the past three years: in Colombia, Indonesia, Hong Kenya, Kenya and Singapore, as well as in Georgia, which recently celebrated the two -year anniversary of the Orange Revolution. The highest level of optimism (63% of respondents) is demonstrated by Indonesians.

Where is the line between political lobbying and party corruption?

Vladimir Zhirinovsky / Deputy Chairman of the State Duma:

"Lobbying and corruption exist only in parties that have the majority of places in the State Duma, since only they are responsible for the adoption of the laws. We have never gained a majority of votes in any convocation, so no one has ever paid for anything. All laws adopt" United Russia "and the Communist Party, they need to ask this question. They really know where the difference is between lobbying and corruption. In this matter, I personally saw how Berezovsky, Khodorkovsky and Abramovich came to the ninth floor to Zyuganov hundred times.

Andrey Metelsky / Head of the United Russia faction in the Moscow City Duma:

"Lobbing is when political parties promote the interests of their region or their voters. But the fact is that we do not have a law that defines this line. When, at what moment the personal interests get above the public, it is incomprehensible. And our faction is now developing a bill on lobbying activities, where lobbying in the good sense of the word will be legalized. The lobbyist is so professional that after his proposals the law becomes more perfect.

Dmitry Bykov / journalist:

"Now party corruption, in my opinion, is not at all. Party corruption can only exist where there are parties struggle, where you need to promote any person so that he votes for some kind of law. Now the laws are not adopted by economic lobbyists, but those that are provided for in a state plan, constituted in the Kremlin. And therefore no one needs to pay. In order to vote for a particular law, even the most large party of the country of “United Russia” has no its own program.

11.12.2005 / Rustem Falyakhov, the material was published in the "newspaper" No. 235 dated 12.12.2005.