Study: Corruption seen as a great challenge in Europe, Asia

BERLIN — One in three people in Europe and Central Asia see corruption as one of the greatest challenges for their countries, but a similar number fear retaliation of they speak out against it, according to a study released Wednesday by an international corruption watchdog. Transparency International said that within the European Union, Spaniards were the most likely to see corruption as one of the biggest problems, with 66 percent saying it was. Transparency said one reason that more Europeans are starting to support populist and nationalist movements could be that they believe traditional democratic institutions are “failing to deliver on promises of prosperity and equal opportunity, and that they cannot be trusted.” “Governments are simply not doing enough to tackle corruption because individuals at the top are benefiting,” said Transparency head Jose Ugaz. “To end this deeply troubling relationship between wealth, power and corruption, governments must require higher levels of transparency.” In other results, the study found one in six households paid a bribe in the past year for access to public services.