KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
KYRGYZSTAN TODAY Policy briefs on - Department of Geography
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PART IV. CORRUPTION IN <str<strong>on</strong>g>KYRGYZSTAN</str<strong>on</strong>g>:<br />
MAJOR FEATURES, IMPLICATIONS<br />
AND CHALLENGES<br />
Kairat Osm<strong>on</strong>aliev,<br />
Doctor <strong>of</strong> Law, Associate Pr<strong>of</strong>essor,<br />
head <strong>of</strong> YurInfo Legal Clinic<br />
Judicial Corrupti<strong>on</strong> in Kyrgyzstan: Magnitude,<br />
Types and Countermeasures<br />
Introducti<strong>on</strong><br />
The Annual Report <strong>on</strong> corrupti<strong>on</strong> worldwide in 2007, prepared by the well-known<br />
internati<strong>on</strong>al anticorrupti<strong>on</strong> organizati<strong>on</strong> Transparency Internati<strong>on</strong>al, focussed <strong>on</strong><br />
corrupti<strong>on</strong> in the judicial system. It was fortunate that this issue was examined, since it<br />
is extremely important today.<br />
The main c<strong>on</strong>clusi<strong>on</strong> <strong>of</strong> the report is that corrupti<strong>on</strong> in the judiciary undermines<br />
chances <strong>of</strong> the internati<strong>on</strong>al community to combat transnati<strong>on</strong>al crime, obstructs access<br />
to justice, and blocks changes in human rights laws. Corrupti<strong>on</strong> in the judiciary means<br />
that the voices <strong>of</strong> innocent victims are not heard, and criminals may go unpunished<br />
[14]. Moreover, corrupti<strong>on</strong> undermines judicial systems globally, depriving people <strong>of</strong><br />
an opportunity to access justice and violating a key human rights: the right to a fair<br />
trial.<br />
It is worth menti<strong>on</strong>ing that corrupti<strong>on</strong> in courts is especially detrimental to all <strong>of</strong><br />
society, since people <strong>of</strong>ten view courts as their last resort when they seek justice. It<br />
is well-known that, in many respects, unfair court rulings in favor <strong>of</strong> particular propresidential<br />
parliament candidates forced people to revolt. This led to the 2005 collapse<br />
<strong>of</strong> the existing regime. Furthermore, experience dem<strong>on</strong>strates that foreign, and even<br />
domestic, investors refuse to do business in the country because <strong>of</strong> over-lengthy and<br />
unpredictable judicial procedures [13]. Obviously, the corrupt judicial system makes it<br />
impossible to tackle corrupti<strong>on</strong> in other government instituti<strong>on</strong>s.<br />
Therefore, studying judicial corrupti<strong>on</strong> and the efficiency <strong>of</strong> countermeasures, as<br />
well as developing and implementing relevant recommendati<strong>on</strong>s, are key elements to<br />
strengthening the state.<br />
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