It is unlikely that in the modern world there is an adult who has never heard of bribery and corruption. Almost every citizen leading an active social life faces this phenomenon.
Unfortunately, quite often in modern society there are situations when some important decision in a person’s life depends on a certain official. This is especially true for entrepreneurship and the economy, trade, construction, etc. Limitations of tax legislation, customs laws, the Criminal and Administrative Code, traffic rules apply to all citizens of the country, and sometimes it is difficult to strictly observe the law. In addition, situations arise where officials themselves extort bribes for the actions that they must take by law. It seems to many people that in all these cases, a bribe to an official is the norm, and thanks to these factors, corruption blooms more and more every year. “If you don’t put it on, you won’t go ...” - citizens admit with a sigh and agree with the official’s demand. Meanwhile, giving and receiving a bribe is an economic crime punishable by law.
291 articles. Giving a bribe
The criminal code currently in force in the Russian Federation (Criminal Code) was adopted in 1996. It provides for punishment for two types of offenses - giving a bribe to an official and receiving a bribe. A bribe is understood as a material reward for an official promised to him or received by him for fulfilling his immediate duties. A bribe to an official is a two-way crime. The recipient of the bribe is called the bribe taker, and the one who gives the bribe is called the bribe taker.
According to article 291 of the Criminal Code, giving a bribe to an official using the services of an intermediary or in person is a criminal offense that is punishable by a fine in the amount of fifteen to ninety-fold with respect to the bribe, or by imprisonment from two to twelve years, depending on the circumstances of the crime and on the size of the bribe. Aggravating circumstances are considered to be a significant amount of a bribe, giving a bribe to an official for committing deliberately unlawful acts (inaction). In these cases, the punishment for the crime will be much stricter. A crime - a bribe to an official - is considered to be committed at the time the bribe recipient receives at least part of the material assets from the bribe giver or his intermediary. Criminal liability for giving a bribe comes from 16 years old. Punishment for a crime and criminal prosecution can be avoided if the bribe giver voluntarily appealed to law enforcement for assistance, helped to solve the crime, or proved that he was extorted a bribe. In this case, the criminal prosecution applies only to the bribe taker.
Receiving a bribe. Article 290 of the Criminal Code
A bribe, as we found out, is a criminal offense. Taking a bribe by employees is considered one of the most serious economic crimes. In this case, the civil servant receives material assets from citizens, using his official position, for performing or not fulfilling his immediate duties in favor of the bribe giver. A penalty of up to ninety-fold bribes, imprisonment of up to twelve years or removal from office, depending on the size of the bribe and other aggravating circumstances of the crime, is punishable for this type of crime. For example, repeated bribes are punished more severely than a single case. Repeated receipt of a bribe means receiving material benefits more than two times by the same person. In any case, mercenary abuse of one's official powers is punishable by law.
Extortion of a bribe
Extortion of a bribe is an aggravating circumstance in the investigation of bribery. If the fact of extortion is proved, the bribe giver may be exempted from criminal liability with the assistance and assistance of the investigating authorities. Extortion of an official means that a
public servant demands compensation for the performance of his official duties in the interests of the bribe-giver, or, on the contrary, for the fact that he will not take the necessary measures that must be taken by law. The threat can be expressed in the fact that the official refers to employment, the lack of necessary documents or materials, artificially creates all kinds of obstacles for making a decision in which the bribe giver is interested. Either the official warns that he will create conditions that impede the activities of the person concerned, or conditions that cause harm to the bribe giver, which can be avoided if additional efforts are paid. Payment is a bribe. The Criminal Code provides for punishment only for the bribe taker with the voluntary assistance of the bribe giver.
History of bribery
The term "corruption" comes from the word corrumpire - abuse of office, bribing, spoiling. This word was first used in Roman law - even Julius Caesar fought against bribery, forbidding officials to receive gold wreaths from the cities that they were offered for their patronage. During the Middle Ages in Europe, officials did not hesitate to receive material benefits using their official position, bribery was widespread. In Russia, civil servants were provided with “feeding” - some payment from citizens interested in the success of their work. In addition, officials received a salary from the state treasury. Tsar Ivan III, Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great were punished for bribery. There were years when bribery was punishable by death.
In the East, bribery was widespread, but there it had the character of a gift offering. In the Middle Ages, the East also began to fight bribery; mercenary officials were removed from their posts and punished.
Starting from the end of the 19th century, state power received more and more powers, state control became widespread and covered all spheres of life of citizens. This led to an increase in bribery, officials and politicians at all levels began to almost openly use their official position and not only take, but also extort bribes from citizens. In some countries, such extortion took the form of party contributions - that is, bribes were not taken by individual officials and officials, but by party representatives.
Recently, corruption has been one of the first places in the field of economic crime around the world. Corrupt officials and governments pose a huge threat to any state, as they impede the development of the country and undermine the authority of the authorities, and sometimes threaten the security of their citizens. So, in the 70s of the last century, a scandal arose over the American company Lockheed, which sold low-quality aircraft in Germany and Japan. The officials of these countries received material benefits from the company.
The phenomenon of corruption largely depends on the standard of living in a particular country and on its national culture. For example, it has been proven that in Japan and China, where the wisdom and loyalty of officials and leaders to their state is cultivated, bribery is a bit less common than in other countries. This is also connected with the laws of the countries - there is more severe punishment for bribes.
Mediation
Mediation in bribery is the actions of third parties that contribute to reaching an agreement between the bribe giver and the bribe taker, or the transfer of a bribe from one participant to another crime. It is believed that it is easier to take or give a bribe through an intermediary - the bribe taker and the bribe giver are not always familiar with each other, in which case the intermediary is involved for greater security and reliability. Most often, the intermediary also has some material reward for his services - sometimes even a percentage of the total amount of the bribe transferred.
Mediation in bribery is punishable by law only if there is a large bribe (article 291.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). A significant amount is considered to be an amount over 25,000 rubles. Mediation is punishable by a fine, up to a forty-fold bribe, or by imprisonment for up to five years. The punishment also depends on the size of the bribe and on other aggravating circumstances - for example, the use of the official position of an intermediary or a particularly large amount of material benefit.
Moreover, assistance or complicity in a crime may be punishable by law, not only when the crime has already been committed and completed, but also at the moment when the mediator offered his services to the participants of the bribe. The mere promise of mediation is already an economic crime.
The main problems in the investigation of bribery
Investigating bribery is not always easy. The most important point hindering the investigation of the crime is the fact that in the case of bribery there are no so-called victims - all participants in the bribe are interested in not being aware of this fact by law enforcement agencies. Corruption is a mutually beneficial act, and the bribe giver is also in most cases not interested in the crime being revealed - his interest is explained by personal participation in the crime and the pursuit of his own interests. This is especially important in cases where the bribe-giver is a violator of the law, tax code, traffic rules, criminal or administrative code of the Russian Federation.
One of the most dangerous, from the point of view of society, is the permanent agreement between the bribe giver and the bribe taker, which arises in the case of the patronage of an official systematically provided to the violator of the law.
Cases when officials, in addition to their posts, have their own economic organizations and enterprises, are becoming more widespread. Their material interest is doubled and reinforced by official powers and capabilities.
The spread of bribery in various fields
According to statistics, bribery in law enforcement agencies is most prevalent. Often, representatives of the police and prosecutors themselves are corrupt, as they perceive bribes as compensation for their hard work, not well enough paid by the state. Bribing a policeman, like any other official, is a criminal offense. Traffic police quite often not only take bribes, but also extort them. In recent years, this phenomenon has become quite familiar and almost normal - despite all the efforts on the part of the state to eradicate corruption. Unfortunately, most citizens accept the conditions of officials and do not prevent receiving a bribe.
Government officials, employees of various administrations and departments also often have the opportunity to receive bribes. There are many officials, and some problems cannot be solved without their assistance and participation, and some unscrupulous employees take advantage of this.
Occasionally, cases of bribery also occur in medical professionals. Gifts from grateful patients often take the form of a real bribe, especially in cases of interaction with medical workers who occupy high positions - chief physicians, heads of clinics and hospitals, etc. It is no secret that with a small gift or reward you can get more high level of service, treatment and care in almost any hospital or medical facility.
Representatives of the education sector are also involved and seen in bribery. Getting tests and sessions, entering an educational institution, successfully completing it, and simply the process of getting an education - all this has its own prices among individual teaching teams.
In a word, there is practically no sphere of public service in which employees practicing bribery would not meet. Unfortunately, measures taken by the state in relation to corrupt officials do not always give the expected result.
Fight against corruption
According to the law, all state committees and departments are required to fight corruption . To prevent cases of bribery, laws and legal acts are being developed. There are special helplines that you can call anonymously and leave information about corrupt officials or cases of extortion. In order to combat corruption, civil servants are constantly adding salaries, control over these people is carried out in all possible ways. For example, in many automobiles of inspectors of GAI video cameras are installed which help to prevent receiving a bribe. The appeal of citizens to law enforcement bodies in connection with corruption is strongly encouraged. From year to year, the selection of people with access to public service is tightened, especially for senior positions. In some state institutions, the possibility of employment through relatives or acquaintances is strictly suppressed, up to the rejection of a vacancy due to the presence of family ties.
All these methods give a certain result, but corruption still flourishes in many areas. A bribe takes on more veiled forms. Official income is hiding, and it is becoming increasingly difficult to prove the fact of a crime. The ways in which giving and receiving a bribe are changing are changing.
The relationship of corruption with other crimes
As a rule, bribery is very rare in itself - most often, the fact of a bribe is closely related to other crimes committed by the bribe taker. A bribe to an official often accompanies other offenses. Theft of items of special value - Article 164 of the Criminal Code, abuse of power - Art. 286 of the Criminal Code, abuse of power - Art. 285 of the Criminal Code, illegal participation in business - art. 289 of the Criminal Code, commercial bribery - Art. 204 of the Criminal Code. All of these articles often apply to the same person when investigating bribery. It should be understood that the punishment for bribery does not exclude criminal penalties under any of the other articles listed, if the offense has occurred.
What to do if you are extorted a bribe?
The interests of every citizen are protected by the Criminal Code. A bribe for an official should not be considered a common occurrence. If such a situation arose, you can act in three ways:
- If you agree to this, you need to remember that the criminal liability for a bribe, if this fact is disclosed, will affect not only the recipient, but also you personally.
- By refusing to give a bribe and warning an unscrupulous employee about your intentions, you can not only not solve your problem, but also aggravate a bad relationship - the official has a certain power, otherwise such a situation would not have arisen. In this case, a positive solution should not be expected, rather the opposite - the employee will do everything possible to solve your problem as difficult as possible. It is possible that they will simply laugh at you and take them home.
- The most reasonable is to make it clear to the official that you agree to give a bribe. At the same time, try to get as many guarantees as possible that your problem will be solved and assistance provided. After that, you need to clarify what amount is involved, how exactly you should pay for services, who takes the bribe from you, at what time and where. After this, you need to contact the law enforcement authorities, write a statement about the fact of extortion. You can ask for help from the FSB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Investigative Committee of the Prosecutor's Office, customs authorities, etc. According to the law, such appeals are required to be recorded in any state body - up to the appeal to the Government or to the President of the Russian Federation. The application must be in writing, one copy is left in your hands. It’s better to find out and remember who will handle your application and what to expect. The more detailed the situation will be described, the greater the chance that the issue will be resolved in your favor.
Corruption is a disease of modern society.It is necessary to deal with it not only to state bodies, but also to ordinary citizens, because ordinary people suffer from corrupt officials. According to statistics, the chances of defeating corruption in a single country are 1: 250, and if appropriate measures are taken in many countries, the chances increase - 1:23. Thus, this problem is best solved jointly, "by the whole world."