Corruption common in many Asian governments [1]
Thursday, March 9, 2017 - 16:23. Updated on Thursday, March 9, 2017 - 20:24.
Corruption is rife in the Asia Pacific region says Transparency International in a recent report [2] revealing just over one in four people living in 16 countries surveyed in the area are estimated to have paid a bribe to access public services.
The report did not include Tonga or any other Pacific Island nation, but focused on larger economies in Asia with Australia the only nation in the Pacific region included.
Nearly 22,000 people were contacted by Transparency International to discuss their recent experiences and perceptions of corruption in their countries and the alarming results show more must be done to curb it.
Police are at the top of the list of public services for demanding bribes. Around a third of people surveyed who had contact with police in the last 12 months reported paying a bribe.
“Governments must do more to deliver on their anti-corruption commitments. It’s time to stop talking and act. Millions of people are forced to pay bribes for public services and it is the poor who are most vulnerable,” said Jose Ugaz, Chair of Transparency International.
“Without proper law enforcement corruption thrives. Bribery is not a small crime, it takes food off the table, it prevents education, it impedes proper healthcare and ultimately it can kill,” said Ugaz.
Corruption affects the poorest the most with around 38% of them being the highest proportion of any income group surveyed saying they paid a bribe.
In China, almost three quarters of the people surveyed said corruption had increased over the last three years, which means people don’t see the fight against corruption working.
Out of all countries surveyed, India had the highest bribery rate with nearly 7 out of 10 people paying a bribe to access public services. Japan had the lowest bribery rate at 0.2 percent of respondants who said they paid a bribe.
Only one in five people surveyed thought the level of corruption had decreased over the last three years, while half thought their government was doing a bad job of curbing corruption.
More than one in five said they felt powerless to help stop corruption (a concerning figure), even though the top response of those surveyed said the most important action to stop corruption is to speak out or refuse to pay bribes.
Transparency International reports that in order to fight corruption, support for whistle blowers should be stepped up and governments should make good on their promises to stop corruption must be kept.
The release of the report is a timely reminder as many governments in the region prepare their agendas to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which includes reducing all forms of corruption and bribery.
The Asia Pacific region is a diverse and rapidly developing area that needs to achieve sustainable and equitable development. It can only do so if corruption is stopped from distorting democratic processes and promoting private over public interests.