Business Watch
Corruption (53)
In a message of greetings to the 10th Congress of the Russian Union of Journalists, Vladimir Putin on Thursday said, in part:
“Your forum has great importance not only for media professionals, but also for the public life of the entire country. After all, journalism has always been more than just a chronicler: it is a direct participant of key national history events and has in many ways shaped public opinions, attitudes, values, morals and political inclinations, and created a national agenda.
The journalist’s word of honour commands great respect. Today, the growing number of media outlets and the appearance of new information technologies and opportunities have increased the demand for an active and responsible position of the media, as well as truly independent and courageous journalism, which Russia needs for effective democratic development, strengthening its civil society and addressing critical challenges. I want to emphasize that what is meant here is not just the objective and unbiased coverage of events and their deep analysis, but also the broader educational mission, the consolidation of the public in the fight against such phenomena as corruption, injustice, bureaucratic abuse of power, xenophobia and nationalism.
I hope that during the congress you will discuss in detail both professional and current, pressing issues that affect millions of our citizens.”
The punishment for those found guilty of corruption should be as severe as for treason, Kirill Kabanov, head of Russia's National Anti-Corruption Committee independent watchdog said on Wednesday.
Russia’s high-ranking officials should buy the stocks of Russian companies to support the domestic equity market, Central Bank Deputy Chairman Sergei Shvetsov said on Thursday.
After large-scale embezzlement schemes revealed at major government agencies and state-owned companies, Russian authorities step up their anti-corruption campaign. The bill forbidding officials from holding foreign-issued assets will be a key step in the crusade.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who oversees the country’s military-industrial complex, called on Friday for harsher punishments for corrupt officials who “betray the motherland” by siphoning funds from defense projects.
The Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) gives a generally positive evaluation to the anti-corruption efforts of the Russian authorities and to the implementation of the GRECO recommendations, the Russian Prosecutor's General Office said.
Russian investigators said on Thursday they have uncovered new fraud schemes inside Russia’s prison system involving buying sugar for prisons at inflated prices.
Moscow police have detained a gang of alleged money forgers, who had produced more than 50 million counterfeit rubles, the Interior Ministry said on Tuesday.
The Labor Ministry has issued an anti-corruption code mandatory for state officials of all ranks, Dmitry Basnak, chief of the ministry's Civil Service Department, told the Izvestia daily on Monday.
Members of the G20 working group on the fight against corruption spent the 25th and 26th of February speaking in Moscow about measures aimed at combatting bribery, extortion, money laundering, and more. One such participant was Chair of the Board of Directors of Transparency International Huguette Labelle.