The situation in the Czech Republic is very poor in comparison with other EU countries, according to Adriana Krnáčová, the head of Transparency International's Czech branch. Krnáčová said the Czech government is doing next to nothing against corruption and bribery, and as she put it, "the situation is stagnating." Cronyism influences politics. Public finances are wasted as a result of corruption. The work of state authorities isn't sufficiently transparent. The bidding process for state contracts and the management of state budgets on various levels are at particularly high risk.

Unfortunately, Transparency International's assessments are based merely on perceptions of corruption; the organization doesn't actually know what the concrete levels of corruption are in the countries it analyses. Instead, it relies on the impression of its respondents.

This doesn't mean, though, that we should ignore Transparency International's reports. It's extremely difficult to "measure" corruption, and it's important that the issue of corruption becomes the subject of public debate. Whatever the true degree of corruption in the Czech Republic, it remains a fact that the country still doesn't have a proper law governing conflicts of interest, a proper law on public contracts or a proper insolvency law, although a draft on conflicts of interest is currently being debated in Parliament.

Statements about perceived levels of corruption are never enough, though. The only way that corruption can be assessed --- and fought --- is by means of agents provocateurs. This is a laborious, long and costly process which requires considerable political will as well as considerable financial investment. Incorruptible journalists and/or police officers need to be planted in institutions that are under suspicion of corruption, often for many months. There must be political will to punish offenders. The media must give priority to cases in which individuals have been caught red-handed in order to instill fear in government officials that agents provocateurs could also be operating against them.

But is it realistic that something like this could be done in the Czech environment, where many people value the personal profit they gain from corrupt deals much more highly than the public good? Can we really expect the Czech media to run anti-corruption campaigns with agents provocateurs like those carried out to great effect by BBC television, among others? Such journalistic work is extremely expensive. Would any Czech newspaper or radio or television station be willing to take part in such a scheme, in an atmosphere where "informal" contacts among "friends" are valued much more than an anticorruption drive? Would a project like this be taken up by Czech newspapers whose editors often have their own, hidden, personal political agendas?

"Corruption is a major cause of poverty as well as a barrier to overcoming it," said Transparency International Chairman Peter Eigen. Foreign investment is lower in corrupt countries. "Corruption is the cold, calculated theft of opportunity from the men, women and children who are least able to protect themselves," said David Nussbaum, TI's Chief Executive. It's crucial to fight corruption. The question remains, though, as to whether the Czech Republic can do it.

Originally published in Czech Business Week HERE