WHY IS THERE SO MUCH CORRUPTION?

"YOU ARE NOT TO ACCEPT A BRIBE, FOR THE BRIBE BLINDS CLEAR-SIGHTED MEN AND CAN DISTORT THE WORDS OF RIGHTEOUS MEN." Exodus 23:8



THREE thousand five hundred years ago, the Law of Moses condemned bribery.   Over the centuries since then, anti-corruption laws have proliferated.  Nevertheless, legislation has not succeeded in curbing corruption.  Millions of bribes change hands each day, and billions of people suffer the consequences.

Corruption has grown so widespread and sophisticated that it threatens to undermine the very fabric of society.  In some countries almost nothing gets done unless  a palm is greased.  A bribe to the right person will enable one to pass an exam, get a driver's license, land a contract, or win a lawsuit.  "Corruption is like a heavy pollution that weighs on people's spirits," laments Arnaud Montebourg, a Paris lawyer.

Bribery runs especially rampant in the world of commerce. Some companies allocate a third of all their profits just to pay off corrupt government bureaucrats.  According  to the British magazine The Economist, as much as 10  percent of the $25 billion spent every year in international arms trade serves to bribe potential customers.  As the scale of this corruption has increased, the consequences have become catastrophic.  During the last decade, "crony" capitalism-corrupt practices that favor the privileged few who have good  connections - is said to have ruined the economies of entire countries.

Inevitably, the ones who suffer the most from corruption and the economic devastation it spawns are the poor - the ones who are rarely in a position to bribe anyone.  As The Economist succinctly put it, "corruption  is but one form of oppression."  Can this type of oppression be overcome, or is corruption inescapable?  To answer that question, we must first identify some of the fundamental causes of corruption.

Next time: What Are The Causes of Corruption?

The Watchtower, 2000