Curruption in Russia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Curruption in Russia - Research Paper Example It has been reported that $35 billion were stolen from government funds in 2010. Corruption in Russia has put a massive burden on the economy and the society and is badly affecting the country as a whole. It has slackened the growth of the economy, and has devalued the government’s efforts to establish a strong infrastructure and a social welfare system. It is mostly fueled by Russia’s weak control over the government sectors and the judiciary system as a whole. Unfortunately, this phenomenon cannot be controlled without threatening the lifestyle and regime of the influential people in the country, who control a large share of the country’s economy. A well-governed lawful state is the only hope to reduce corruption in the country, but it cannot be established without the support of the elite society in the country. The fact that a new system of government has to be formed by breaking the old structure has daunted all past presidents of the country, and has made t hem even more reluctant to bring changes in the country. (Corruption Grows in Russia) Foreign investors have concluded that Russia is a very risky place to invest their money, which has come as a big blow to the country’s economy. Foreign investors are continuously being cheated and plundered, which has made them ever more reluctant to invest. Hermitage Capital Management, one of the largest investors in the Russian stock market, was occupied in a case that showed the ever-increasing corruption in the Russian justice system, and the level its credibility. Hermitage has accused the Russian judiciary and the police force, to have taken bribes from local gangsters, in order to sell three of Hermitage’s Russian subsidiaries. Furthermore, these subsidiaries were used to steal $230 million from the Russian budget. Hermitage has also informed the Russian State Audit Chamber, of other cases where similar fraud has occured with other companies, which ultimately cost the Russian budget a loss of $240 million. Hermitage has also declared that all these frauds were interlinked, and the police, judges and organized criminal groups, were all involved in the conspiracy. (The Hermitage case and corruption in Russia). There have been numerous other corruption cases regarding the Russian government. In 2010, The U.S. Justice Department revealed documents, which accused the German carmaker Daimler to have paid the Russian government officials, millions of euros in bribe. This was to seal the sales of patrol cars for the police and sedans for the presidential motorcade. For some time, there was no reaction from the Russian government, and things remained quiet. At last, Russian Ministry of Interior, declared an investigation regarding car sales and purchase in the recent year. Although, some government officials, who promised to solve it, met this Daimler case with much vigor the case remains one of the foremost examples of the corruption existing in Russia, and how vulnerable the government officials are to bribes and other forms of corruption. In addition, in 2007, prosecutors in Germany, who were accused of taking bribes from the multi-national company, Siemens, revealed numerous names of Russian government officials. (Russia Slow to Pick Up the Lead in Bribery Cases) Corruption in Russia is not only affecting the economy, but is also slowing down the country’s transition from communism to capitalism. Russia is still recovering from its communism policies, but the