Lawyers and prosecutors admit corruption persists in legal system

About 90% of the lawyers and over 70% of the prosecutors that filled out questionnaires as part of the third report on the monitoring of anticorruption activities in the framework of the Threshold Country Program of the Millennium Challenge Corporation admitted that corruption persists in the legal system, Info-Prim Neo reports. Half of the respondent lawyers and 28% of the prosecutors said that they know about cases when money and other goods were offered as bribe to help solve cases in favor of the interested sides. Though the respondents said they realize that corruption has a negative impact, they found excuses for the corruption acts. According to the study, 73% of prosecutors and 68.7% of lawyers consider that the phenomenon of corruption in the legal system is due to the low salaries and to the fact that the people are tempted to take bribe. 15.9% of prosecutes and 25.4% of lawyers said that the violation of integrity and the non-resistance to corruption are among the main causes of corruption. 52.2% of lawyers and 34.8% of prosecutors consider that corruption is caused by the faulty legislation, while 47.8% of lawyers and 33.35% of prosecutors - by political intervention. Among the most often factors that favor corruption, mentioned by the respondents, were the lack of reaction in combating corruption (57.1%) and the opportunity of earning additional incomes (44.4%). The respondents said that to raise salaries is the most efficient measure to stop corruption (65.6% of prosecutors and 63.8% of lawyers). 53.1% of prosecutors and 49.3% of lawyers said that the most efficient method is to hold accountable those that commit acts of corruption. The lawyers pay greater attention to the need for improving the legislation and reporting on corruption cases. The monitoring report on the implementation of the Threshold Country Program is a product of the civil society that aims to reduce corruption by implementing appropriate measures. The project is implemented by the Anticorruption Alliance, “Ex lege”, the Human Rights Resource Center, Pro Marshall Center in Moldova, Transparency International Moldova and the Centre for Analysis and Prevention of Corruption