One of our listeners has suggested we explore whether or not bribery is ever ethical. Have you ever been in a situation where bribery has been an acceptable course of action?
Last year’s inquiry into the business activities of wheat exporter A-W-B exposed a culture of bribery and undercover deals, disguised as legitimate transactions. There’s no doubt AWB paid millions of dollars to Saddam Hussein’s regime, in order to secure wheat deals.
Many Australian farmers said they understood why AWB acted the way it did…many saw the paying of bribes simply as a way of doing business in the Middle East…and saw it as a case of ‘when in Rome, do as the Romans do.’
We’d love to hear from you if you’ve been in this position, while doing business overseas. But you don’t have to be involved in complex overseas business transactions, to be involved in bribing someone.
What about social bribery? Have you ever given someone, something, in the hope that you’ll be able to change a particular outcome or circumstance? Or maybe you’ve been on the receiving end of a bribe?
When travelling overseas, do you pay a bribe if it’s the only option? To get through a border, to get out of a tricky situation…is bribery different if it’s an acceptable part of that country’s culture?
Or closer to home, maybe you’ve given your child a lolly to keep them quiet, or to clean their room. It’s a good outcome if they do it…so is it OK?
The crux of the dilemma is this. If the outcome is good, is bribery ever acceptable?
Comments (2)
Point of interest for this discussion. Definition of what we are discussing would be useful.
Bribery is generally defined as the act of giving money to cause a person to act improperly or outside of their duty. e.g. Giving a police officer money to let you off a speeding fine.
Extortion is often mistakenly called bribery. Extortion is the act of giving money or gift to obtain what is rightfully yours. An example of this would be if a company puts in a tender for a contract and offer the best contract, however the official states that they will get the contract on payment of x amount of money / favour. In some nations or institutions it is understood without anything needing to be said that money needs to be given in extortion.
I have talked through this issue with Western Christians living in countries where bribery and extortion are accepted practice. In almost all cases they would say that bribery as defined above is imorral, however there is a lot of debate on extortion.
Having lived in India and experienced these issues I have decided never to pay either bribe or extortion. In India I have found that almost all jobs can be completed through persistance, although a little money under the table would have made it a lot easiser.
We had a particularly positive experience when trying to get my wifes passport. We had received all the signals that money was required to get what she was entitled to and refused to give it. The office we were going through was a Police department. Finally after several attempts at reason we went to the the Head of Police in the city. Within five minutes he had made the required calls, threatening sacking of the corrupt official if he heard anything more of this. The next day we went back to the original office and were treated like royalty. Our job was done in five minutes with tea and coffee provided along with profuse apologise. A job that should have taken 1 hour had taken 1 week but with persistance we managed to get it done. Having said that I have several advantages over many other people in India as far as power and ability to push my point so I do not look down on anyone who chooses to pay extortion.
Posted by Shane Anderson | August 14, 2008 4:55 PM
Posted on August 14, 2008 16:55
There is a fine line between bribery and rewards for good "performance". Are annual bonuses for staff, based on good performance, bribery? I think if a reward is offered and then is used as a threat "If you don't do this, your annual bonuses are at stake" then it becomes a bribe.
Bribery also depends on the intent. When you complain about a company's goods or services and they give you a discount or refund are they genuinely sorry for their poor performance and giving you due compensation, or are they buying your silence, believing that if they compensate you significantly, you will not tell others of your bad experience?
Is a mother with a child in a shopping trolley bribing her child to be quiet by buying him a book, or is she intelligently realising that her child is bored with this shopping experience and catering to his needs? It depends on the intention...
Posted by Liz | February 12, 2007 1:08 PM
Posted on February 12, 2007 13:08