A bit of interesting news – The Russian Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) is getting medieval on corrupt officials. The party just submitted a draft law in the Russian parliament that would brand public officials with a K (the first letter in a Russian word for corruption) on their hand for giving or receiving bribes. In addition to this, the proposal calls for banning public officials convicted of corruption from holding positions susceptible to bribery. The idea is that branding people for corruption would create a social disincentive to engage in bribery.
Do you think this would work?
The proposal got me thinking, however – what other unconventional anti-corruption efforts have been proposed or implemented? For instance…
India: A bill valued at 0 (zero) resembling a 50 rupee bill given to public officials – done! From the Economist:
One official in Tamil Nadu was so stunned to receive the note that he handed back all the bribes he had solicited for providing electricity to a village. Another stood up, offered tea to the old lady from whom he was trying to extort money and approved a loan so her granddaughter could go to college.
Kyrgyzstan: Chopping off hands or fingers of public officials – proposed by a member of parliament (in Russian).
Brazil: A short film contest to make the public aware of the dangers, costs, and mechanisms to fight corruption – done!
Published Date: July 21, 2010