by Trinh Anh Duc
17-7-2001
Vietnam's powerful Ministry of Public Security wants a special court set up to deal with corruption, describing the problem as a national disaster. The abuse of power threatened the legitimacy of the ruling Communist Party - a signal, some observers said could mark the beginning of a new offensive against corruption. Furthermore, corruption would be disasterous for the country's economy, especially after it become very clear that the Asian economic crisis that began in the middle 1997 was caused and exacerbated by corruption and the various countries of Southeast Asia.
After two glorious victories [over France and the US], the disease has developed to an alarming level - corruption has become an internal enemy and a national disaster. More than ever, [revolutionary leader] Ho Chi Minh's warning against the abuse of power . . . should be taken as the lesson of our time.
A string of recent public statements from Vietnam's top leaders acknowledged the failure of a two-year purge that began in early 1999. A decree issued in May 2001 allows for the death sentence to be passed in corruption cases if the amount exceeds US$200,000.
A survey of 700 Hong Kong businessmen in February rated Vietnam as the most corrupt country in Asia, awarding the country 9.75 points out of a worst possible 10. The findings were rejected as unfair by a Vietnamese government spokesman. But he did say the average person felt powerful Vietnamese were immune to prosecution.
"We are told we live in a socialist country," one resident of Hanoi said. "But we actually live in a country where people with power can do what they like without being punished. In fact it has become a country of avarice and rampant capitalism in its ugliest form."
A Western diplomat said many leaders were aware of the implications of corruption for both the party and economic development but were prevented from acting by the system itself, which made the country's 2.4 million Communist Party members accountable only to each other. He noted that an April directive from party Secretary-General Nong Duc Manh that all members draw a list of assets had yet to materialise.
"There is a lot of public support to reduce corruption in the lower and middle ranks, but the problem goes right to the very top and that is where it gets difficult to tackle it," he said. "Among the top echelons of Vietnamese politics, power is actually quite diffused and it is driven by the need for consensus. If one faction were to push too hard on corruption, consensus on a range of policy issues would be difficult to achieve."