THE ANATOMY OF CORRUPTION

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THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), 2023 has been released by Transparency International showing that most countries have made little or no progress in tackling public sector corruption.

ABOUT CORRUPTION PERCEPTION INDEX (CPI)

• It is an annual index released by Transparency International, a global civil society organization.
• Since its inception in 1995, the Corruption Perception Index has become the leading global indicator of public sector corruption.
• The CPI ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption on a scale of zero (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).
• It uses data from 13 external sources, including the World Bank, World Economic Forum, private risk and consulting companies, think tanks and others.

HIGHLIGHTS OF CPI, 2023

• Only 28 of the 180 countries measured by this index have improved their corruption levels over the last twelve years, and 34 countries have significantly worsened.
• CPI global average score remains unchanged at 43 for the twelfth year in a row.
• Denmark with a score of 90 tops the index for the sixth consecutive year, with Finland and New Zealand following closely with scores of 87 and 85, respectively.
• Somalia was ranked last, other countries occupying the bottom spots included: Venezuela, Syria, South Sudan and Yemen.
• India has tied with Maldives, Kazakhstan, and Lesotho to rank at 93 out of 180 countries. In 2022, India was ranked at 85. Our overall score has slipped from 40 to 39 on a scale of 100.
• Pakistan scored 29 with a rank of 133 and China, scored 42 occupying rank 76.

ANALYSIS OF CPI, 2023:

• Serious Corruption Globally: Over two-thirds of countries score below 50 out of 100, which strongly indicates that they have serious Corruption problems.  The global average score is stuck at only 43, while the vast majority of countries have made no progress or declined in the last decade.
• Factors Contributing to Corruption: Both authoritarian and democratic leaders are undermining justice. This is increasing indication for corruption, and even encouraging it by eliminating consequences for criminals. Corrupt acts like bribery and abuse of power are also infiltrating many courts and other Judicial institutions across the globe.
• Decline in Justice: There has been a global decline in justice and the rule of law since 2016. The rise of authoritarianism in some countries contributes to this trend, and even in democratic contexts, the mechanisms that keep governments in check have weakened. Governments across the political spectrum have undermined justice systems, restricted civic freedoms and relied on non-democratic strategies to address recent challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Corruption has many faces: The index has highlighted that corruption has many faces. Bribe is the most obvious one, which has been almost accepted as a necessary evil. A certain amount is fixed for each work to be given as illegal gratification. Nepotism is another facet of corruption which is widely practiced by the political class. Favouritism falls under nepotism or cronyism. Even the academic field is rife with this kind of corruption.

THE WAY FORWARD:

• Introduce integrity and monitoring mechanisms. There is a need to ensure that the special protections required by members of the legislative system to perform their functions are not abused. Abuse may be prevented through dedicated whistleblowing and reporting channels, and other relevant actors to disclose their assets and interests.
• Expand avenues for accountability: There is a need to expand the system for expansion of avenues for accountability. This calls for those foreign countries to have in place key procedural measures, such as extensive jurisdiction, minimal immunities for foreign state officials and a broad definition of justiciable harm that encompasses widespread harm to a large number of victims.
• Strengthen the independence of the justice system. Shielding the justice system from interference is paramount for its functioning. Promote merit-based rather than political appointments and ensure that the system has qualified personnel and is properly resourced.
• Make justice more transparent. Transparency can help shed light on the functioning of the justice system and make it more accountable. Ensure that relevant data on judgments, out-of-court settlements and enforcement as well as legal procedure and administrative rules are openly available and can be scrutinised by members of the public. This could help discourage corruption and ensure that laws against corruption are properly applied and administered.
• Public Awareness Campaigns: It is suggested to use media and educational institutions to create awareness about the detrimental effects of corruption and the importance of ethical conduct.
• Encouraging ethical culture: Similarly, rewards and incentives must be granted to encourage people to cultivate an ethical culture. There is a need for real-time information sharing between law enforcement agencies.

THE CONCLUSION:

Transparency International has released its Corruption Perceptions Index for 2023, ranking countries based on their perceived levels of corruption in the public sector. It pointed towards rising corruption worldwide. In this context, there is an urgent need for strengthening preventive vigilance and value-based training to all authorities to ensure probity in public life.

UPSC PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Q.1 Discuss how emerging technologies and globalisation contribute to money laundering. Elaborate measures to tackle the problem of money laundering both at national and international levels. (2021)

Q.2 “Institutional quality is a crucial driver of economic performance”. In this context suggest reforms in the Civil Service for strengthening democracy. (2020)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q.1 Despite progress made across the planet in criminalising corruption and establishing specialised institutions to address it, corruption levels remain high globally. Analyse the statement in the context of recently released Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), 2023.

Q.2 Countries with the lowest scores in the Rule of Law index are also scoring very low on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), highlighting a clear connection between access to justice and corruption. In this context, discuss the relationship between justice and corruption.

SOURCE: https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/the-anatomy-of-corruption-2906495