Students will organise anticorruption campaign in Moldovan universities

The Students Alliance of Moldova has initiated an anticorruption campaign in the higher education establishments of Moldova. The event organised by the Alliance with support from the Ministry of Education and Youth and from the National Union of Students of the Netherlands will take place on July 9 and 10. T-shirts with the words ‘YES to Education’ and pens with the messages ‘NO to Corruption, YES to Education’ and ‘I Do not Want to Be a Corrupt Man’s Pen’ will be distributed to the members of the admission commissions during the campaign. The campaign forms part of the plan for preventing and combating corruption in education institutions worked out by the Students Alliance of Moldova. During 2006-2007, the Alliance implemented a number of activities designed to prevent this phenomenon. A survey conducted by the Alliance during the winter session shows that about 35% of the polled students gave bribe since in university. Some 24% of these said they gave bribe to get a better mark at exams, while another 24% said they gave money as bribe. Some 44% of the students consider that the teacher is to blame for corruption, while 35% accuse the student who bribes. At the same time, each second polled student said that the poor remuneration of the teachers is the main cause for corruption in universities. The anticorruption campaign will start at the Technical University and will continue at the State University, the Academy of Economic Studies and the Free International University of Moldova. The event will be continued during the Summer School organised by the Students Alliance of Moldova, which will be attended by students, teachers, deans, pro-rectors and rectors from Moldova and abroad.