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Friday, April 8, 2011

Corruption Undermines Ukraine

It was not until he was personally affected by the concept of corruption began to think seriously about it. This happened to me recently when my young friend Ukrainian Ana, I was approached for a loan. Willingly the obligation only to discover that this loan was to help pay a bribe to continue her studies at Ivan Franko University of Lviv. I was in total shock and disbelief.

The media bombard us daily with shocking news about the scandal and exploitation. The buzzwords are the media, information leaks, calls for transparency, etc. .. take care document This sensationalism trivializes the global epidemic of corruption. However, when it comes knocking on your door, then you really stop and pay attention.

Ana insisted that explain the whole situation for me. It turns out that the payment of bribes to the degrees or diplomas is a very common occurrence in Lviv and Ukraine! Students pay a minimum of one dollar for each hour of class missed, five hundred dollars to enter a particular faculty and 15 to 20 thousand dollars depending on the degree you are looking for. This is an incredible burden on the parents of these students. More importantly, how can you trust the infrastructure of a society where doctors and lawyers are buying their diplomas?

Surprisingly, Ana does not seem as worried as me. She does all this in stride. She explains that this shadiness has been an integral part of society for a very long time, certainly since the Soviet era. Now taken for granted corruption. She seems to justify the system, explaining that teachers and tutors are so poorly paid that they could not survive without these subsidies. Now I understand that payment of bribes in Lviv has a ripple effect throughout the social system, is a catch 22.

My poor, dear Ana is an innocent victim of circumstances. She is at the mercy of an unscrupulous. Possibilities for change in this "culture of corruption" seems very limited.

Initially, I see your attitude as an example of the passivity and apathy that have come accustomed to with my friends and acquaintances in Lviv. They are often angry with them for their lack of protest against injustice. However, whenever I come around to understanding that they are afraid of the authorities and the system all his life and that this culture of fear can take generations to overcome.

The university scene is small compared to the billions of dollars of money laundering schemes by the oligarchs of the country. The changes must come from the highest level of society-government. This form of exploitation harm the reputation of the country, discouraging investors and ultimately undermines the economy in general. Transparency International has ranked Ukraine, 70, 85 of the most corrupt countries in the world. Due to fears of a tax system designed to bribe, 70% of companies operating in the black market of Ukraine-serious complaints.

The personal exposure to the abuse of justice that makes me sad and frustrated. But I'm just a visitor here and I am able to return to the stability of my country. Ana lives here and she and her colleagues are a tool to challenge these injustices. Their indifference and inaction only serve to perpetuate the problem. She and her contemporaries are the wave of the future and are responsible for the refusal of an ethical environment. I wish all the best and a very bright future.

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