Abstract
Cyprus and Greece, both members of the EU and the Eurozone, are currently in the throes of a devastating financial crisis. Public opinion surveys carried out in Cyprus (2010, 2011, 2012), Greece (2012, 2013) and the 2014 Eurobarometer identify the perceptions of and reasons for corruption, the category profile of the offender and likely measures considered to be effective by the public and the EU Commission. Following the survey findings and a review of the legislation in both countries to identify loopholes in the system, a number of suggestions are made in an effort to rebuild trust in the ‘archon’ and set the ‘tone at the top’. The policy implications of the suggested measures aim to improve the two countries’ image so as to attract foreign investment which will lead to economic growth and the IMF and the European Central Bank will consider the financial cliff the countries are facing from a positive angle.
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Notes
- 1.
European Commission (2014b) EU Anti-Corruption Report. http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/home-affairs/what-we-do/policies/organized-crime-and-human-trafficking/corruption/anti-corruption-report/index_en.htm. Accessed 6 Feb 2014.
- 2.
European Commission (2014f) Press Release: Commission unveils first EU Anti-Corruption Report, 3 Feb 2014, IP/14/86.
- 3.
Cf. the article of Alex Cobham in Foreign Policy of July 22, 2013: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/07/22/corrupting_perceptions. Accessed 20 Mar 2014.
- 4.
V. Tanzi, H.R. Davoodi, Roads to Nowhere: How Corruption in Public Investment Hurts Growth, International Monetary Fund, 1998, p. 1.
- 5.
European Commision. (2012) Road Map technical assistance—for Anti Corruption. http://ec.europa.eu/commission_2010-2014/president/pdf/roadmap_en.pdf. Accessed 15 Mar 2014.
- 6.
Ministry of Justice, General Secretariat for Transparency and Human Rights. (2013). Transparency National Anti-Corruption Action. http://www.ministryofjustice.gr/site/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=KyH_7RZiUPg%3D&tabid=64. Accessed 15 Mar 2014.
- 7.
Transparency International (2013). Corruption Perception Index 2013. http://www.transparency.org/cpi2013/results. Accessed 15 Mar 2014.
- 8.
Among these conventions, the following can be particularly mentioned: The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions of 17.12.1997 (Law-Number 2656/1998); the European Community’s Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions of 26.5.1997 (Greek Law Number 2802/2000); the Council of Europe’s two Conventions on Corruption in Criminal Law and in Civil Law of 27.1.1999 and of 22.7.2003 respectively (Greek Law-Numbers 3560/2007 and 2957/2001); and also, the United Nations’ Convention against Corruption of 31.10.2003 (Greek Law-Number 3666/2008).
- 9.
Articles 3, 4 of Greek Law-Number 2802/2002 and Articles 3, 4 of Greek Law-Number 3560/2007.
- 10.
Article 2 of Greek Law-Number 2656/1998, as it was replaced by Article 9, of Greek Law-Number 3090/2002.
- 11.
See also Law Number 4022/2011 concerning the acceleration of the procedure in cases of state officials and ministers or MP’s.
- 12.
Article 61 of the Greek Constitution: (a) A Member of Parliament shall not be prosecuted or in any way interrogated for an opinion expressed or a vote cast by him in the discharge of his parliamentary duties, (b) A Member of Parliament may be prosecuted only for libel, according to the law, after leave has been granted by Parliament. The Court of Appeals shall be competent to hear the case. Such leave is deemed to be conclusively denied if Parliament does not decide within 45 days from the date the charges have been submitted to the Speaker. In case of refusal to grant leave or if the time-limit lapses without action, no charge can be brought for the act committed by the Member of Parliament, (c) This paragraph shall be applicable as of the next parliamentary session—A Member of Parliament shall not be liable to testify on information given to him or supplied by him in the course of the discharge of his duties, or on the persons who entrusted the information to him or to whom he supplied such information.
Article 62 of the Greek Constitution: During the parliamentary term the Members of Parliament shall not be prosecuted, arrested, imprisoned or otherwise confined without prior leave granted by Parliament. Likewise, a member of a dissolved Parliament shall not be prosecuted for political crimes during the period between the dissolution of Parliament and the declaration of the election of the members of the new Parliament. Leave shall be deemed not granted if Parliament does not decide within three months of the date the request for prosecution by the public prosecutor was transmitted to the Speaker. The three month limit is suspended during the Parliament's recess. No leave is required when Members of Parliament are caught in the act of committing a felony.
Article 86 of the Greek Constitution: (a) Parliament shall have the right to prefer charges on serving or former members of the Cabinet and Undersecretaries before an ad hoc court, according to the statutes on the liability of Ministers. This court is presided by the President of the Supreme Civil and Criminal Court and shall be composed of twelve judges chosen by lot by the Speaker of Parliament in public sitting from among the members of the Supreme Civil and Criminal Court and the Presidents of Civil and Criminal Courts of Appeal who held office prior to the accusation, as specified by statute; (b) Prosecution, judicial inquiry or preliminary judicial inquiry of the persons specified in paragraph (a) for actions or omissions committed during the discharge of their duties shall not be permitted without a prior resolution of Parliament. If in the course of an administrative inquiry evidence should arise which may establish responsibility of a member of the Cabinet or an Undersecretary in accordance with the provisions of the statute on the liability of Ministers, those in charge of the inquiry shall, after its termination, forward the evidence to Parliament through the competent Public Prosecutor. Only Parliament shall be entitled to suspend criminal prosecution; (c) Should the procedure on a motion against a Minister or Undersecretary be discontinued for any reason whatsoever, including the lapse of prescribed limitation, Parliament may, at the request of the accused person, decide the establishment of a Special Committee of Members of Parliament and senior judicial functionaries to investigate the charges, as specified by the Standing Orders.
- 13.
This fact is also corroborated by the results of the Transparency International Global Corruption Barometer (GCB). http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/gcb/2010.
- 14.
Cf. Article 41 of Law-Number 1249/1982 and Article 14 of Law-Number 1473/1984.
- 15.
Ministry of Interior Decentralisation and E-government (2010) Transparency and Openness Policies of the Greek Government “Cl@rity” Program: Every Government Decision on the Internet. http://diavgeia.gov.gr/en. Accessed 20 April 2013.
- 16.
Cf. however, Article 236.2 of the Greek Criminal Code.
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Krambia-Kapardis, M., Courakis, N. (2016). Anti-corruption Measures: The Panacea to a Financial Cliff. In: Dion, M., Weisstub, D., Richet, JL. (eds) Financial Crimes: Psychological, Technological, and Ethical Issues. International Library of Ethics, Law, and the New Medicine, vol 68. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-32419-7_1
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