It undermines democracy and the rule of law, leads to violations of human rights, distorts markets, erodes the quality of life and allows organized crime, terrorism and other threats to human security to flourish. “ Corruption is an insidious plague that has a wide range of corrosive effects on societies. The following are Annan’s own words, in the foreword to the Convention. There is a ‘ UN Convention Against Corruption’ with 71 articles adopted in 2003 during Kofi Annan’s time. As Laurence Cockcroft argued in ( ‘ Global Corruption: Money, Power and Ethics in the Modern World’), ‘these motives can be closely intertwined.’ While it is individuals who sustain a system mired in corruption, the latter can be engineered by groups or political parties with the intention of achieving and retaining political power. The rat race for advancement is rampant influenced by consumerism or the demonstration effect. In a situation where most religious institutions are themselves corrupt, the only effective deterrent is through punishment.Ĭorruption can become widespread in societies which suddenly become rich or ‘developed’. Temptation to buy into a corrupt system can only be combated through religion, socialisation, the law and education.
It can even become a habit at a personal level.
It is important to use a moral compass particularly in the case of politicians.Ī major reason for corruption is personal or family enrichment. Corruption is illegal, however there can be weaknesses or loopholes in a legal system that allows culprits to go scot-free. Those acquisitions must be uncovered and exposed. What has happened, or is happening in Sri Lanka are unfortunately not isolated incidents, but can be likened to a cancer in society, akin to the Donoughmore Commission’s reference to communalism as a ‘ cancer on the body politic.‘ Corruption involves surreptitious acquisition of money, property, assets or power. It can also mean the decay of society along those lines. Jayatissa (a clerk) does not take bribes just for survival, but to live in luxury.Ĭorruption can involve the simple act of soliciting a bribe.
However, as the recent popular teledrama ‘ Nethu’ revealed about what normally happens at a local council office, it would be difficult to distinguish between the two. Petty corruption refers to bribes that minor public servants (peons, clerks) seek and obtain for survival, as they are grossly underpaid. There are organisations, including anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International, who make a distinction between ‘petty’ and ‘grand’ corruption. It is often grouped with bribery, but corruption is a broader ailment. There are various definitions on the term. The independence of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), law enforcement (including the AG’s department) and crucially, the judiciary, are of paramount importance. Therefore, the public must rely more and more on independent sources to identify, expose, prosecute and eliminate corruption. One may argue that this is a repetition of 1994, when there was much talk about ‘ Dushanaya and Bhishanaya’ (corruption and terror), but no concrete action after the government was elected to power. This government has nevertheless exposed themselves, with major deviations from this commitment with the anomalies surrounding the Central Bank from the very beginning. Sri Lanka is in a precarious position as the present government was voted into power in 2015 on the strength of a platform of good governance, committed to combating corruption, among other social justice issues. Selective neglect coupled with exaggeration do little to eliminate the problem. Those who might make a genuine effort (like the JVP perhaps) should not do it for pure political gain. Whether this holds true in practice is still a controversial topic due to various political alliances and ambiguous practices. The reason for pinpointing ‘leftists,’ entirely independent of other political groups and formations, is their declared commitment to combating corruption and injustice. The media, academics, journalists, civil society organisations, religious leaders and ‘leftists’ should make a concerted effort to oppose and expose corruption, without bias to any one political party or regime. Those who can make a major contribution against corruption are not limited to one or two organisations. The ultimate victims are ordinary people. Corruption derails development, distorts the democratic system and decays the moral fabric of society. When you open a daily newspaper, chances are there will be four or five cases involving corruption within its pages, reported almost every day. Recent events have brought the issue of corruption into the spotlight.
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