Russia drops four places to nr 147 in this year`s rating from Transparency International. Last year, Russia was number 143. The level of corruption in the country is now like in Kenya, Syria and Bangladesh.
The corruption level in Russia has surged over the last years. In the rating from 2005, Russia was number 126 of 158 ranked countries. In 2006, the country was 121 of 163 countries and in 2007, 143 of 180 countries. This year’s ranking is headed by Sweden, Denmark and New Zealand.
Figures from Russian police confirm the negative trend. On in the course of 2008, as much as 13 percent more corruption cases have been registered compared with 2007, Newsru.com reports. So far this year, a total of 30,000 cases of corruption been officially registered.
Likewise, the average bribe to Russian officials has over the last years increased from 10.000 USD to 136.000 USD, newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta writes. The corruption problem is now considered to be the main factor hampering sustainable economic growth in the country. The problem has got a systematic character.
Head of the Russian Higher School of Economics Yevgenii Yasin says to Nezavisiamaya Gazeta that the corruption problem can not be solved before the state starts to serve the society and not the other way around. He has no belief in the solutions prescribed by President Medvedev.
-Corruption – it is a disease which can not be healed with the help of a tablet, he says.
President Dmitrii Medvedev has made fight against corruption one of his top priorities and recently presented his counter-corruption programme.
