The realities of fighting corruption in war times

• In Event: Roundtable: War Time Criminology

Abstract

Data of the number of surveys on corruption in the Ukraine show sustainable decrease of the corruption perception and everyday corruption experience. According to our survey results in 2013-2014 up to 65% of Kharkiv residents has corruption experience and in 2022, during the war, only 10% reported about personal corruption experience. But if you look deeper, then data on the policing and criminal prosecution of corruption offences show contradictory patterns. In 2022, the number of registered cases was 988, and those “sentenced” were only 65, which is 15 times less. Such a large gap indicates a significant decrease in effectiveness in the fight against corruption, and this trend, unfortunately, has been stable over the past 10 years. There is a range of potential explanations proposed, from a shift of attention, and an understanding of the wider dynamics of corrupt exchange, to the deeply politicised mode of the fight against corruption and an easy target for police. This paper discusses the issue of trust to law enforcement and the ability of fighting corruption in war-time Ukraine.

Authors

• Anna Markovska, Anglia Ruskin University

• Oleksii Serdiuk, Kharkiv National University of Internal Affairs, Ukraine

• Iryna Soldatenko, Karazin Kharkiv National University and Anglia Ruskin University (PIER)