[View the story "A New Online Weapon to Fight Corruption in India" on Storify ]A New Online Weapon to Fight Corruption in India IPaidABribe.com tracks the exchange of bribes in India, and takes a hard swing at widespread corruption in that country. Storified by The Stream · Wed, Oct 26 2011 21:59:46
Two Bangalore anti-corruption activists have founded a website that tracks bribes exchanged in India--the amount paid, reason for the bribe, and other details--as a way to shed light on the widespread practice of bribery and the system of corrupt local politics it supports. The bribe reports do not include the name or identifying information of the official who accepted the bribe.
I PAID A BRIBEI Paid a Bribe is a unique initiative to fight corruption. Its primary aim is to uncover the market price of corruption. Tell IPAB your stories. Using these we'll advocate with the government for an improved system. Together let's fight corruption.
Analysis of data collected from the site can help determine just how deeply the system of bribery is entrenched in the Indian political system and how much money changes hands in under-the-table dealings.
I Paid A Bribe: An Endeavor in India · Global Voicesglobalvoicesonline.org
Users log on to share the details, including rupee amounts, of bribes they have paid to officials.
i was asked to pay Rs 500/- to get my arranged marriage registered.ipaidabribe.com
After the death of my mother, we applied for 'removel' of her name from the Property card along with all the required documents. The job could be done only after we paid rs. 50,000 which was scaled down fromRs. 100,000 after great haggling.ipaidabribe.com
Anupam Sharma, an I Paid a Bribe user in Bangalore, told us about his experience with local officials' corruption when applying for a passport. Ultimately, he said, he had no choice but to pay 400 rupees to the official to get his passport application completed.
He adds that the site works well as a way to keep bribery in check but is limited to those Indians who have reliable Internet access.
Sharma Anupam talks to the Stream [1 of 2]AJstream
Sharma also shared that he has often been able to avoid paying bribes, although it can slow down the process.
Sharma Anupam talks to the Stream [2 of 2]AJstream
This video, from I Paid a Bribe's YouTube channel, provides activists with guidelines to help them avoid paying a bribe.
Ten Commandments in Englishipaidabribe
The site, founded by Ramesh Ramanathan and Swati Ramanathan in 2010, is just one in a fast-growing group of blogs, networks, and online groups organized to encourage citizens to take a stand against corruption in India.
Profile Picturesfacebook.com
Saaku - We can End Corruption. Yes, WE CAN!Everyone is unhappy about corruption, but very few of us know how we can fight it. Saaku is a state-wide campaign against corruption where we can overcome this problem by working together, learning how effective different methods of corruption-fighting are, and sharing our experiences to make governance better throughout the state.
Profile Picturesfacebook.com
While the vast majority of Indians, activist or otherwise, oppose corrupt bureaucracies in their government, there is a vocal minority of academics and government officials who argue that legalising certain parts of the bribery system is the best way to limit this kind of abuse of power, especially when used against the poor.
India’s chief economic adviser Kaushik Basu argues that for a certain class of bribes, which possibly for want of a better word he describes as ”harassment bribes,” bribe giving should be a legitimate activity. Such bribes should be directed only toward getting services to which you and I are legally entitled at the moment, such as an income tax refund or customs clearance for an exporter’s goods.blogs.wsj.com
Rema Hanna, a Harvard economist who has studied bribery in India, argues that greased palms may actually bypasses an ineffective bureaucracy and boost economic growth.
You can imagine a case that if you're able to pay a bribe and cut a lot of the red tape, get around a lot of the bad laws, it might actually make things in the economy move a lot smoother and you might actually see more growth because of it.npr.org
But defenders of the bribery system are squarely in the minority in India, particularly after the corruption scandals that tarnished the Commonwealth Games in 2010. Public sentiment has come out in force against the kind of cronyism and corruption that many say now characterize the Indian government at all levels.
A cancerous strain has besieged the soul of India.blogs.5thpillar.org
Incredible India? RT @abhinavsahai: RT @surekhapillai: bribed a guard at a cremation ground to make space for the dead. #indiashiningI Paid A Bribe
Dunno why we waste time with elections when the only way to get the govt to listen to you is through fasting and scams #IndiashiningShruti_Bose
Activists involved in the online movement have recently started to spill over into the streets of Indian towns and cities to attend nonviolent sit-ins, marches, and fasts associated with social activist leaders such as Baba Ramdev and Anna Hazare, both of whom boast massive "offline" followings.
Anna hazare Chennai supporters protesthareeshankar
Anna Hazare Anti Corruption RallySaad.Akhtar
Read a previous report from The Stream on Anna Hazare
here .
Ironically, accusations of corruption, including money laundering, have been levied against the social activist leaders themselves, weakening their authority and driving impassioned Indians to organise for themselves.
The moment black money is donated to an Ashram it becomes white money. ~ Sri Sri Rizvi Baba<br>Rizvi Amir Abbas Syed
Here, a well-known newspaper cartoonist makes light of these "yogi" social activists, accusing them of the same kind of corruption they claim to oppose.
Everybody a loves a few (weekend) contortions « churumurichurumuri.files.wordpress.com
In spite of perceived corruption of the movement's leaders, the ranks of their followers are growing online and anti-corruption groups continue to gain traction, and, possibly, some power to influence India's endemic corruption.
Fast and candle march in Jagdalpur, Bastar, Chhatisgarh!!!India Against Corruption
Activists and organisers took to Twitter with the hashtag #iamfastingonjune8 to spread the word of another wave of nationwide fasting in nonviolent protest. Participants blogged and tweeted about the June 8 fast from Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and other major cities across India and the diaspora.
#iamfastingonjune8 Citizens in Pune to gather at Shaniwar Wada from 4-7 pm, contact - 09764447141shivendravats
#Iamnotfastingonjune8 i am gonna make sure i neva bribe to see a bribe free India this for my countrymen/women who say #Iamfastingonjune8anuragrekhi
I guess I have been drugged. Last I remember I went to sleep in a democratic country. Woke up in autocratic one. #iamfastingonjune8VJmishra7
Overheard in the street : Aji Ghanta Fast #iamfastingonjune8TheAngrezJailer
#iamfastingonjune8 because India needs its youth to b awake and teach congress a lesson...nirmitsheth9
As the movement continues to grow on the web and in the streets of India, the Indian Parliament is preparing to discuss and vote on an anti-corruption bill in this summer's legislative session. The Rajya Sabha, or upper house of India's Parliament, has been unable to pass an anti-corruption bill since it was first passed up from the Lok Sabha, or lower house, in 1969. If it fails again to pass this year, it will not be for lack of public and official support.
