9 December is World Anti-Corruption Day. Corruption is a global problem – it hurts a country’s economic, political and social development; it adds unnecessary costs to doing business and it denies smaller, less well resourced companies the chance to compete fairly. It hurts individuals in their daily lives. Corruption impacts the most vulnerable groups in the society. It diverts limited economic resources from the most needy to groups that have more power politically and financially.
It is important that we do not shy away from honest discussion about corruption. A recent opinion survey by Srinakharinwirot University in Thailand claimed that “corruption has become a part of people’s mindset here in Thailand, where cheating is tolerated”. Recently we have seen increased political awareness about corruption in Thailand through anti-corruption movements on the streets and in debate on social media. Allegations of corruption have occupied more space in Thai politics. The current government claims that fighting corruption is high on its agenda.
We all want to see effective action against corruption. Corruption is not only a barrier to business but also hampers economic development. Thailand is ranked 85 out of 175 countries in the 2014 Corruption Perception Index by Transparency International. Thailand’s score on public sector corruption is 38 out of 100 (where 0 score means highly corrupt and 100 means very clean). Among 28 Asia Pacific countries, Thailand is ranked 12th. It is welcome that Thailand’s ranking this year has improved from last year, but there is still much to be done.
Corruption is a global problem, including in the UK. Some argue that it stems from moral failure. Some go further and argue that corruption depends very much on its enabling factors. Corruption can be linked to subjectivity in decision making, to lack of access to information, and to long and complicated public service processes. Tackling corruption in public services requires the bureaucratic system to shift the decision making process from such complexity and subjectivity to a simpler and clearer rules-based system. Transparency and simplicity are major enemies of corruption.
Corruption is not, however, for government alone. Change needs to be driven by all sectors in society. Digital technology allows information to flow more freely, to be more accessible to a greater number of people, and to be subject to greater critical scrutiny. Social media in particular can bring pressure to bear and encourage official sanction against proven wrong-doing. Digital application processes are quicker, cheaper, and cleaner.
The role of the private sector is also very important to cut the supply side of corruption. If companies refuse to tolerate bribery, it will not only reduce the ‘cost’ of doing business in the long term and create a more level playing field, but hopefully it will finally reduce the demand side of corruption.
This is what we have seen in the UK – the UK Bribery Act is one of the strongest anti-corruption laws in the world. This is not only an indication of the UK’s commitment to tackling corruption, but an assurance that anyone doing business with British companies knows they are dealing with a business which is required to meet the highest ethical standards.
We at the British Embassy are doing what we can to support those who want to bring about positive change. We have supported the Thai Institute of Directors’ Collective Action Coalition against Corruption (CAC) since 2012. This is bearing results. More and more companies are declaring their intention to comply with CAC criteria. We are also very pleased to see that Thailand has recently submitted its application to join the Construction Sector Transparency Initiative (CoST), which is designed to strengthen the public construction procedure to be more transparent. We are working closely with the Thai government, the CoST secretariat and other stakeholders on a capacity building project to support implementation of CoST in Thailand.
I finish where I started. It is important that we do not shy away from honest discussion about corruption. I am reminded of the famous quotation by Lord Acton: ‘Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely’. Corruption has been shown to be closely linked with any system of patronage and inequality in a political structure. That’s why fighting corruption needs strong collective action from all parts of society and greater awareness that fighting corruption is a challenge for everyone. Those guilty of corruption should be subject to the law, whatever their role, position or social status. It is important that justice be seen to be done. Corruption is an abuse of power. It is more likely to be successfully rooted out on a sustainable basis if there is rule of law, effective checks and balances, public participation and accountability. We will support Thailand fully as the country works towards such a system.