How to eliminate corruption in Hong Kong

..27-Year-old former football player Yu Yang was arrested in the morning, just in bed. According to the informant, the fall of 2009. Young has paid 10 thousand. Dollars. Five players who have agreed for a bribe "weak play" in an important league match in Hong Kong. While Yang led to the police station, he suggested that guards about the deal - each received 50 thousand. US., If he is allowed to escape. Witnesses conversation was not, but both cop moved away from a tempting offer.

- Too bad guy - he's from Central China, recently we moved, - said sympathetically later in an interview with an officer of the convoy. - Even could not imagine that the police here does not take bribes.





Even wipers - corrupt

... For the modern Hong Kong and true nonsense, if a civil servant would be a "finger in the pie." In the "anti-corruption" Transparency International ranking of Hong Kong is on the 12th place: higher than Germany, Austria, Japan and even Britain, once owned the this city. This is all the more surprising because 95% of the population of Hong Kong - Chinese. "Writing on the paw" civil servants "thank" the right person - in China has always been commonplace, as we do. But back in the 70s., Having served in Hong Kong for 20 years, a modest British officials returned to London, having in the bank for half a million pounds. The police were on the "salary" from drug * otorgovtsev, took bribes even teachers for the device child to school janitors (!) And they demanded a bribe from residents of the house cleaning the sidewalk. - It seemed hopeless situation - says press officer Stanley Wei Hong Kong Police. - What is there to fix? The state apparatus through corrupt businessmen pay kickbacks and tribute mafia thugs freely taken to the city of heroin and "live goods" - about * titutok. Arrange shootings in Central China, we could not. However, as it turned out, to fight corruption, we need one more thing - the desire.

... In 1974, the Governor-General in Hong Kong established a new structure - the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICCC). All officers of the Commission are appointed personally governor for six years and is subject only to him. The Commission consisted of three departments - operative was instructed to calculate the bribe and receive complaints from the public, "prevent" - the study of bribery schemes in those industries that are most susceptible to corruption (such as our traffic police), public - conducting propaganda. Originally Hong Kong residents skeptical grinned:

- We know, we know, arrested a couple of scapegoats, the story was going to end - and the governor asked the officers to gain the trust of people. Within six months imprisoned several high-ranking officials, as well as opened a criminal case against ... the police chief of Hong Kong. He fled to London, but the governor has made the bribe taker and the subsequent issuance of the court. All of these events were widely covered by the press. Seeing that they take and the "big fish", the population began to actively help. Even now, in the Commission Against Corruption runs "hot line": any person, day and night can call them and tell that he had solicited bribes. Plus bribery "to extenuating circumstances" in Hong Kong is not a crime if, for example, the driver paid the police, the man will be punished in uniform.

"Tell me where the money?»

In fact, the leadership realized that without strict measures failed, - said the journalist Robert Ho, who covered the first steps to combat corruption. - Therefore, for the officials simply abolished the presumption of innocence. What is it? Actually Commission Against Corruption operates under the laws of the military tribunal if they have "reasonable suspicion", they may be placed under arrest any public servant. Also enshrined in the law: when a civil servant and his family live on a grand scale, have villas with pools, accounts abroad, he is obliged to prove the commission that received these funds legally. If it proves not to provide documents - get 10 years in prison.

... The salaries of the employees of the Independent Commission Against Corruption 20% higher than that of the police. ICCC officers do not submit to the Ministry of Interior or the security services, but can always arrange a check in any ministry at the slightest suspicion of bribery. And so that they will not be tempted to grab "a lamb in a piece of paper," the actions of the Commission there is a "community committees" of businessmen and intellectuals. In the first year of the new structure was convicted more than two hundred bribes (5 million population of Hong Kong), and the situation began to improve in his eyes. Officials should stop taking bribes, collapsed and organized crime, the famous "triad": the bandits can not live without "roof" of politicians. Now Hong Kong - one of the "cleanest" city in the world - yes, there is still the case of rollback, but mainly in the private sector, civil servants do not take bribes almost. In 1974, corruption was infected 90% (!) Of the state apparatus, in 2000 - 6%, now - only 3%.

- When the reforms started, people thought it was fantastic - smiles political scientist Stephen Lee. - It's Asia, here if you fight corruption, only to be shot, as in China. It turned out that the main aspect - the public's trust. Once people saw that put bosses, not just "sixes" - began to call the commission. Journalists tracked all purchases of officials and their close relatives, just that - a bank account was frozen. Taking bribes was dangerous and unprofitable business.

... Thirty years - not such a serious amount of time. You can certainly say that in a particular city is much easier to stamp out corruption than in a large country. Generally find a lot of excuses. However, as I said in Hong Kong officer Stanley Wei, to defeat corruption requires one thing - desire. And then everything will turn out.