Corruption - The Abuse of Power by Politicians

Corruption is the abuse of public office for private gain₂. There are many forms of corruption. Politicians can sometimes (1) steal money (theft or embezzlement), (2) accept bribes (such as backhanders for awarding government contracts to companies), (3) give bribes (i.e., for electoral support or support in the mass media), (4) improperly coerce others (extortion), (5) give positions of power to friends and family without fairly seeking other applicants for those jobs (cronyism), or (6) grant favours to friends and family (nepotism) such as buying services from them at inflated prices (graft).

Corruption benefits organized crime₃, multinational companies that exploit legal loopholes between countries₄, and the rich and powerful₅; this comes at the expense of national stability, peace and security₃. The presence of corrupt politicians has been weaponized by those who seek to undermine democratic countries₆. According to Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index₇, the least corrupt countries in 2022 were Denmark, Finland and New Zealand₁ and the worst were Somalia, S. Sudan and Syria₁.

1. Corruption and the Social and Moral Development Index
2. The Undermining of Democracy
3. Full Results by Country
4. Full Results by Region/Bloc
5. Other Challenges That Democracies Face
6. Links

1. Corruption and the Social and Moral Development Index

The Corruption Perception Index data comes from Transparency International, who publish annual statistics on corruption with data drawn from over a dozen international financial and monitoring bodies₇; the final results are imported as part of the Social and Moral Index. The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: Which are the Best Countries in the World? The Social and Moral Development Index..

Because of its focus on the long-term showcasing of good examples, the SAMDI includes a dataset for previous decades, with each country's scores in that decade being averaged.

The 2000s CPI used a different formula before 2012, so don't compare directly any of the data from before 2012 to later years; for that reason, the averaged data for the 2010s only includes 2012-2019, although, the relative country rankings are still comparable.

2. The Undermining of Democracy

#corruption #democracy #politics #smoking #UK #UK_politics

Democracy should not mean "the best politics and policy that a billionaire, a banker or a technology monopolist can buy" and such a phenomenon soon undermines democracy₅. But corruption is rife in some countries, and sometimes local practices encourage it, such as paying minor officials below a wage on which they can live₈.

“Corruption undermines democracy in a number of ways. It distorts public priorities, by channelling investment into projects where the rewards of corruption are largest and easiest to conceal. It breaches the trust between the people and their elected politicians. And it undermines confidence that the electoral process can be used to change people's lives for the better, rather than feather the nests of those elected. Corruption is much more prevalent in developing than developed countries, partly because of limited economic opportunities [...] and inadequate salaries, and partly because of the absence of a strong culture of public service and public interest. However, it is also colluded in by businesses in the developed world, in their eagerness to secure lucrative contracts abroad.”

"Democracy: A Beginner's Guide" by Beetham, David (2005)₉

Organized crime benefits from the availability of corruptible politicians, finding themselves able to influence justice, avert the police, and make authorities look away from things that powerful criminals don't want them to see. There is a direct correlation between corruption and the ability of governments to resist organized crime:

Source: Transparency International (2022) and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime₃

A UK example from the 1990s:

“In 1997 the new Labour prime minister, Tony Blair, swiftly got into hot water over whether there were connections between a £1 million donation his party had received from the boss of the Formula One motor-racing business, Bernie Ecclestone, and the subsequent exemption of Formula One from a ban on tobacco advertising which was being introduced at that time by the EU. [...] More than a decade later, by which time Blair had stood down as prime minister, official documents were released showing that he had in fact instructed his ministers to seek a permanent exemption for Formula One.”

"The Fate of the West" by Bill Emmott (2017)₁₀

3. Full Results by Country

#1990s #2000s #2010s #corruption #politics

Here is the full set of data plus averages for previous decades - note that the formula changed in 2012, moving from 10-based maximum to a 100-based maximum. Countries are only included in decadal averages if they had 3+ data points in that decade, except, as the CPI only began in 1995, the 1990s only require 2 per country.

4. Full Results by Region/Bloc

#1990s #2000s #2010s #corruption #politics

5. Other Challenges That Democracies Face

#commercialism #democracy #government #politics

Democracy does not work well in all circumstances₁₁; it faces challenges from every level of society. These must be continually resisted on every front₁₂.

1. Large corporations and multinationals can defend their own interests and use their effects on the economy to sway governments in an undemocratic manner_13,14. Powerful industries spend huge amounts of money on producing fake science, fake news reports and manipulative "lobby groups" to influence policy-makers: oil_15,16,17 and tobacco_17,18,19 lobbies are infamous for this. Newspaper companies have far too much power_20,21, sometimes running campaigns as part of political deals with various parties and damaging democracy in the process.

2. Voters themselves need to be educated and well-informed in order to vote wisely_22,23 but they do not do so, often voting on short-term and shallow issues that are not in their own long-term interests_24,25, making some worry if democracy at all can continue to function₂₄. Many democracies witness a continual decline in the numbers of people who bother to pay any interest in politics, let alone to vote₂₆. A constant threat is the 'majority rules' impulse, that can lead to the 'tyranny of the majority' or 'mob rule' situations in which outsiders and minorities become unfairly persecuted_27,28,29.

3. There are problems with political parties and governments. Short-term policies such as increasing spending keep governments in power_30,31 whereas wiser, long-term policies are less popular with parties - voters. Highly motivated activists can exert undue pressure on governments₃₂. Dictators, bigots, fascists and separatists can all be voted in along the same lines as anyone else₃₃. Some governments come to abuse power, and, single-issue-parties and ethnic/separatist parties prevent the equality-of-opportunity and balance that should come from government. Finally, politicians themselves are sometimes corrupt.

In short, constant vigilance is required to prevent "democracy´s own weaknesses lead[ing] to disaster"₃₂ , and a system of balances and checks must be maintained, to ensure that the democratic system is not going astray.

For more, see:

• "The Internal Challenges Facing Democracy" by Vexen Crabtree (2017).