Globalization of Corruption: An Introduction
(international cheating, defrauding, and dishonesty and their detriments to human progress)
International Concerns about Corruption
The classic definition, followed by the World Bank and Transparency International, views corruption as the use of one's public position for illegitimate private gains.
Abuse of power and personal gain; however, can occur in both the public and private domains and often in collusion with individuals from both sectors.
Information International in Lebanon, therefore, adopted the following definition: "Corruption is the behavior of private individuals or public officials who deviate from set responsibilities and use their position of power in order to serve private ends and secure private gains." (Lebanon Anti-Corruption Initiative Report, 1999).
The UN's Global Program against Corruption (GPAC) defines corruption as the "abuse of power for private gain" and includes both the public and private sectors.
Although perceived differently from country to country, corruption tends to include the following behaviors:
- conflict of interest
- embezzlement
- fraud
- bribery
- political corruption
- nepotism
- extortion
Variations of Corruption
One measure of the extent of corruption in a particular country is Transparency International's annual Bribe Payers and Corruption Perception Index
Why corruption develops varies from one country to the next. Among the contributing factors are faulty government and development policies; programs that are poorly conceived and managed; failing institutions; inadequate checks and balances; an undeveloped civil society; a weak (corrupt) criminal justice system; inadequate civil servants' remuneration; and a lack of accountability and transparency.
In most cases; however, these are symptoms rather than causes of corruption. In any case, we consider them as correlations of corruption since corruption is likely to occur when any of these conditions exist, but it is not always necessary that there will be corruption where any of them is found.
A serious obstruction to the success of any anti-corruption strategy is a corrupt judiciary.
A corrupt judiciary means that the legal and institutional mechanism designed to curb corruption; however, well-targeted, efficient or honest, remains crippled. Unfortunately mounting evidence is steadily surfacing of widespread judicial corruption in many parts of the world.
Insufficient attention has been given to the integrity of the judiciary and the broader criminal justice system.
2. The state of being corrupt.
3. Decay; rot.
4. Etymologically the word "corruption" comes from the Latin verb corruptus "to break"; past participle of corrumpere "to destroy" [com-, "together with", intensive prefix + rumpere, "to break"].
Conceptually, corruption is a form of behavior, which departs from ethics, morality, tradition, law, and civic virtue.
Extended definitions and examples
- Lack of integrity or honesty (especially susceptibility to bribery); use of a position of trust for dishonest gain [syn: corruptness] [ant: incorruptness].
- In a state of progressive putrefaction [syn: putrescence, putridness, rottenness].
- Decay of matter; as by rot or oxidation.
- Moral perversion; impairment of virtue and moral principles: "the luxury and corruption among the upper classes"; "moral degeneracy followed intellectual degeneration"; "its brothels; its opium parlors; its depravity" [syn: degeneracy, depravity].
- Destroying someone's (or some group's) honesty or loyalty; undermining moral integrity: "corruption of a minor"; "the big city's subversion of rural innocence" [syn: subversion].
- Inducement (as of a public official) by improper means (as bribery) to violate duty (as by committing a felony): "He was held on charges of corruption and racketeering."