Corruption is present in most economies of the world, including the most developed and organized countries. In states whose economic system is undergoing a stage of formation, such phenomena are sometimes not only tangible, they directly affect the prospects for political development. In Russia, corruption forms a problem recognized by many experts and social activists, which, probably, the state will have to solve based on the scale of issues related to it. What are the practical tools of the Russian authorities in countering this phenomenon? What sources of law underlie the activities of departments related to this area of work of the public administration system?
The relevance of anti-corruption
Anti-corruption must be implemented, of course, in any country in the world. However, the fight against this phenomenon is of particular importance for states with developing socio-economic systems that are in a state of transit, seeking their own development path, which, in all likelihood, belongs to Russia.
Effective anti-corruption in our country is one of the prerequisites for further modernization of the political system, improving the economic model so that crisis trends are not as tangible as is observed in a number of areas today. The most important criterion is the implementation of appropriate policies at the level of the highest authorities, that is, in the aspect of the development and qualified implementation of laws governing anti-corruption measures. There are such sources of law in Russia. Let's study their essence.
Anti-corruption laws
Among the sources of law governing anti-corruption policies, it is worth noting:
- Federal Law "On Combating Corruption";
- National plan signed by the President of the Russian Federation;
We begin the study of their features from the second source, since its publication was preceded by the adoption of the first. Anti-corruption in the Russian Federation (according to the document) is a necessity, due to the fact that such negative phenomena prevent the Russian economy and society from developing effectively. We will study the structure of the National Plan.
National plan
The document in question consists of several sections. The first one says about the need to develop legislative measures aimed at combating corruption. It is worth noting that the adoption of the Federal Law, which we mentioned above, was announced precisely in the National Plan. The very first section of the document defined what anti-corruption is, what kind of activities should be carried out within the framework of relevant activities, and by whom. Also in this part of the document the necessary tasks facing the state were stated. Consider this aspect in more detail - it is he who, as many experts believe, is one of the key in the general spectrum of anti-corruption initiatives of the authorities.
State anti-corruption policy
The anti-corruption issues, therefore, were largely decided by the Russian state in the person of the highest power institutions. In the National Plan, which we are now considering, the following conceptual theses were presented, reflecting the directions of work in this area. We list the main ones:
- improving the structure of government, optimization of responsibilities entrusted to each;
- the need to develop anti-corruption measures at the level of creating environments in which employees of state and municipal bodies fulfill their labor and official duties;
- approval of a special kind of anti-corruption standards depending on the specific sphere of social activity;
- guarantee of access to justice, improvement of pre-trial dispute resolution mechanisms.
A number of experts also consider the most important area of the state anti-corruption policy (as indicated in the relevant section of the National Plan) to improve key legislative acts, such as, for example, the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation with a focus on tougher sanctions related to corruption offenses.
In search of system excellence
The next element of the structure of the National Plan is section number two. It laid out the essence of what measures should be taken to combat corruption, reflecting the very mechanism for improving public administration structures. What kind of activities were noted in this section of the National Plan? Mainly, it was supposed to concentrate efforts in the areas of using state and municipal property, stimulate competition in the economy, improve public procurement mechanisms and state contracts, develop intra-departmental models for detecting corruption.
Lawyer must be qualified
The next group of measures, which the National Anti-Corruption Plan contains, is set out in the third section of the document and is related to the improvement of professional training in the field of jurisprudence, as well as work to improve the legal culture of citizens of the Russian Federation. Thus, two areas of work were identified here. As part of the first (with regard to advanced training of personnel), it was assumed that, first of all, state control over how educational institutions that train lawyers will be strengthened will be strengthened. In the second area of work, it was planned that the population of the Russian Federation will have the opportunity to replenish their knowledge of legal issues through specialized media resources.
the federal law
In 2008, the Federal Law on Combating Corruption was adopted (as part of the practical implementation of one of the areas of work outlined in the National Plan). Actually, many of the theses that we have stated above have received appropriate legal status at the official level. Therefore, we will not go deep into theory, but will move on to practical nuances regarding law enforcement practice that reflects the effect of the Federal Law under consideration.
The ambiguity of interpretations
There is a thesis according to which the federal law in question contains norms in such formulations that their practical application in some cases can be carried out selectively (and sometimes the relevant provisions can be interpreted ambiguously). That is, legal anti-corruption is aimed, according to some experts, to a large extent to achieve some resonant effects, observed on the examples of high-profile cases and demonstrative lawsuits, but systemic problems are solved very mediocre.
There is another group of problems. In some cases, authorities involved in law enforcement practice under the Federal Law under consideration apply its norms, from a formal point of view, it is true, but in fact it is not entirely appropriate.
For example, a case is known when several large Russian airlines, having hired former employees of state bodies, forgot to notify their previous employers about this, thereby violating the rules of the law, as a result of which they were fined. The anti-corruption sphere, according to some analysts, should not make exceptions in the aspect of fixing offenses and responding to them. However, the emphasis in the conduct of relevant activities by the competent authorities should be placed as competently as possible. That is, for example, if all available personnel and organizational resources of departments are directed to identifying incorrectly drawn up labor contracts, there will simply be no one to deal with real, significant violations.
Statistics must be correct
Another aspect is statistics. If it is compiled on the basis of precedents similar to those that were recorded in the case of airlines - of course, the figures in no way can be interpreted as reflecting the success of the authorities in pursuing an anti-corruption policy. It is necessary that the statistical data reflecting the results of the relevant activities be representative. And it depends, analysts say, not only on the wording in the law, but on the ability of the competent authorities to correctly place accents in their activities. Although, there is an opposite point of view in this regard. It is based on the priority of the reading mechanism, and not on the interpretation of laws. That is, those fines that were imposed on airlines are completely fair (based on direct rules specified in the sources of law). All questions, therefore, should be addressed to the legislator.
Business liabilities
It is interesting that the anti-corruption action plan set out at the level of federal legislation obliges us to participate in the practical improvement of the social and economic environment in the aspect of combating this negative phenomenon, not only state but also other institutions that are not directly related to the government system. First of all, this is a business. Companies, according to a number of provisions in the sources of law, are required to develop and implement preventive measures related to combating corruption. Which for example? Alternatively, an enterprise can develop an internal regulation on combating corruption, develop a code of ethics that reflects employees ’communication with state authorities.
At the same time, as some lawyers note, the responsibility for failure to comply with the order in question is not clearly defined in the sources of law. This, by the way, is another example of insufficient, in the opinion of a number of experts, elaboration of legislation. Indeed, if an enterprise, say, did not organize an anti-corruption department in its structure or, say, refused to develop a code of ethics, no agency, proceeding from the norms of the law, has the right to oblige the company to take the necessary actions. But, one way or another, the company is obliged to execute them. She can do this, for example, using the developed anti-corruption recommendations, which are a list of key principles that it makes sense to adhere to businesses that want to deal with the negative phenomenon in question. But, as we said above, enterprises have the right to develop their own local norms of the appropriate purpose - to create, for example, a regulation or an anti-corruption order.
What can I give?
Let's move on to the study of the practice of applying specific provisions of the Federal Law "On Combating Corruption". The most interesting prescriptions are contained in the 17th article of the law. It says that the official does not have the right to receive remuneration for the performance of his functions, expressed in cash, gifts and other preferences. If, however, a citizen or an entrepreneur nevertheless presented a certain value to a public servant, he undertakes to transfer it, having executed it according to the relevant act, into federal property. But there is an exception: if the value of the gift is less than 3 thousand rubles.
What will happen if an official accepts a value whose value is known to be (with a high probability) greater than the established amount? In this case, this can be qualified as an official receiving a bribe (and transferring it, respectively, by an individual or organization). The result - most likely, an impressive fine will be issued in respect of violators.
Anti-corruption policy: foreign experience
How is anti-corruption policy organized in other countries? Some experts recommend paying attention to Hong Kong. The Anti-Corruption Commission in this country, according to many analysts, is one of the most effective bodies in the world of its profile. This agency has developed a number of theses and recommendations regarding the implementation of effective measures to combat corruption. They are applicable, experts say, not only in a single country in the world, but in almost any modern state. What do anti-corruption experts from Hong Kong offer? Literally the following:
- bodies responsible for anti-corruption policies should be independent of the executive, excluding the highest official of the state; in the case of Russia, this is the president - only the relevant departments should be accountable to him;
- in the direction of personnel policy in the field of public service, the principle of selecting the most worthy candidates and retaining the best specialists should be observed;
- authorities responsible for combating corruption should have great authority to disclose possible offenses;
- the country should have a system of strict public oversight over the work of the agency responsible for the relevant area of work;
- the activities of anti-corruption bodies should be commensurate with the capabilities of the country's budget.
How similar is the Russian National Anti-Corruption Plan to Hong Kong recommendations? It is difficult to detect a clear trend reflecting the opinions prevailing in the expert community. But if we examine certain provisions of the Federal Law, as well as the National Plan, then a certain similarity of the criteria set forth in the Russian sources of law and the wording that we cited above can still be fixed. For example, the theses regarding personnel are very close in both the Russian and Hong Kong versions.
Social factor
What can determine the practical success of a state anti-corruption policy? Experts believe that this is largely determined by the ability of the authorities to build a dialogue with society as a whole or in its individual environments. It often happens that the emergence of new legislation aimed at combating corruption is accompanied by the appearance of excess bureaucracy in departments, sometimes in areas where such phenomena are completely undesirable. For example, in the field of education. Anti-corruption in a school or kindergarten, these are the phenomena, experts believe, which are not always appropriate to put on a par with the policy of preventive measures in relation to authorities related, for example, to budgetary and administrative tasks.
What should be the specialized body?
Despite the fact that anti-corruption in Russia is a process regulated at the level of federal legislation, in our country there is still no separate body (as in the Hong Kong scenario) that would be independently responsible for the implementation of the relevant direction of state policy. There is the Office for Combating Corruption under the President of the Russian Federation, but it does not have the status of a separate authority. Among experts there is a thesis that such a department would be advisable to create.
Moreover, according to analysts, the legislator should take a particularly balanced approach to the issue of empowering such an authority. That is, for example, by endowing it with functions of a “police” nature (carrying out arrests, etc.), the authorities may with certain probability provoke disagreements between the activities of the employees of this department and the existing power structures, experts say.
It is important, analysts say, to focus on proactive, not reactionary actions. Closely intersected are phenomena such as economic security and anti-corruption. That is, it is a matter of ensuring that in practice not only the observance of the norms of the law is ensured, but also the interests of business structures that play a crucial role in building the state economic system are respected. Let us recall the case with airlines - it would seem that the authority to hire employees rests entirely with the internal structures of corporations. However, the law provides for a norm that allows the state to legally, albeit in a limited mode (through fines), but still intervene in the affairs of a private company.
In the work of a single anti-corruption body, which the Russian legislator may have to create, the aspect of public control is important. , , , , ( ) , , . , , , , , , . , - , , . , .