Quote:
Originally Posted by wyndslash
so there was this news on tv talking about insider trading payments, then my dad comments that he thinks it's only natural for people to give gifts and the recipient to "help out". isn't that just a nice way of calling it a bribe? i mean, he doesn't think it's a bribe, and it worries me that i'm going to be working in the finance industry in the future, not that i think there's an industry that is immune to bribes and human greed.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pdurrant
That is indeed a bribe.
Pervasive small scale bribery corruption inhibits the economy and encourages larger scale bribery and corruption.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wyndslash
@benham: indeed. that was what i was trying to tell him.
@pdurrant: thanks for the links  i think what i am just worried about is the fact that my parents think that way. does that mean i won't be able to count on them to advise me well if and when i run into a moral dilemma in my future career? |
Unfortunately, Asia runs on 'tea money.' That's a polite term for bribes. There are lots of names for it depending on the country but the fact is, without it, almost nothing gets done in Asia.
When I ran my business in Thailand, the police would visit once a month. "Can we see your license to play the radio here, please?" "Can we see your license to hang pictures on the wall?" "Can we see your license to have a lock on your door?" Each month it was a different 'license' and every month it was "Oh, no license. No problem. We can accept your fine right here." Never much, but every month for years.
"Need to register your car? You can wait in that line for three days or you can give me $2 and I'll be happy to process your papers for you in five minutes."
"You wish to rent a store front here? Oh... that's very difficult. There are many people who would like to start a business here, and I have sooo many problems to think about... Right now I have to pay my daughter's school tuition and I don't think I have enough money..."
"You were driving 5kph over the speed limit. I will have to confiscate your car... unless you pay the fine immediately. That will be $3."
In Malaysia, the police were running road blocks all over Kuala Lumpur every day for weeks, stopping drivers and issuing street fines. Hundreds of people getting stopped and having to pay out money on the spot. But suddenly the road blocks were gone. Not one could be found. It turned out that the money wasn't making it's way up the command chain. The higher ranking officers weren't getting their cut, so they ordered the road blocks stopped! After a while, the street cops decided that they should give their officers more money, and the road blocks resumed. Everybody has to pay, even the cops.
This is 'street level' tea money. If you want to open a factory you will pay a lot more. Run a bank? Big money there. Work in politics. Big money there. The bigger the business involved, the larger the bribes required. The higher up you have to pay, the larger the bribes required.
You don't have to pay them. Just don't expect to get anything done in Asia without them. It's been that way for 5,000 years, and like it or not, it's not going to change. Yes, it's illegal. But yes, it will go on.
In Asia it's a well known fact of life, and it's not hidden. It's just discreet. In the West, it is hidden, covert, and skulks around every corner. But it goes on all the time. Just not so much at the street level. When it's discovered in Big Business it makes the news. Oh my! Can you imagine? Bribes!
Stitchawl