Lessons from Hong Kong—Chase a crooked shadow (Part 3)  

February 22, 2012

As the ICAC chief said at an international conference, corruption occurs when an individual abuses his authority for personal gain at the expense of other people. Corruption erodes fairness and the rule of law, and in some cases, puts lives and property at risk

R Vijayaraghavan

In the previous part, we saw that a senior government official of Hong Kong was imprisoned and lost a huge pension, not for taking a bribe but for using his position to give illegal contracts to a relative. Can we even imagine that such a thing will happen in India? No way, given present attitudes and pressures.

But there are lessons, even in merely recapitulating how Hong Kong did it.

In the words of the current head of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), the Commission has been committed to fighting corruption using a three-pronged approach of law enforcement, prevention and education. The ICAC’s first important task was to bring Godber (the policeman who ran away with a hoard of corruption money) back. Godber’s extradition and prosecution “were an unmistakable statement of ICAC’s determination and resolve to eradicate corruption. It was this landmark case that kicked off a new start against corruption and the beginning of a quiet revolution,” the chief of ICAC has said.

Hong Kong also had a strong governor committed totally to eradication of corruption, members of the ICAC who were incorruptible and a population sick of paying “squeeze” money; unlike in India where the top leadership does not give a damn, the anti-graft warriors are themselves corrupt and a population that says “everyone is doing it, so we too have to do it.”

In Hong Kong, a mass purge took place in early 1978, which saw the sacking of 119 officers and one customs official. To fast-track the decisions in the public interest; 24 officers were held on conspiracy charges and six officers and a customs official were given amnesties.

As the ICAC chief said at an international conference, corruption occurs when an individual abuses his authority for personal gain at the expense of other people. Corruption erodes fairness and the rule of law, and in some cases, puts lives and property at risk. The spirit of the Prevention of Bribery Ordinance enforced by the ICAC is to maintain a fair and just society.”

Within three years of formation, the ICAC smashed all corruption syndicates in Hong Kong. In its 38 years of existence. ICAC achieved the following:

• Eradicated all the overt types of corruption in the government. Corruption now exists as a highly secretive crime, and often involves only satisfied parties.
• Amongst the first in the world to effectively attack private sector corruption.
• Ensured that Hong Kong has clean elections.
• Changed the public’s attitude to no longer tolerate corruption as a way of life; the people support the fight against corruption. They are not only willing to report corruption, but are prepared to identify themselves in the reports.

The new strategy also changed Hong Kong’s social norms regarding corruption. It organized a massive education campaign, adding anti-corruption classes to the public school curriculum, and creating anti-corruption television programming.

The Hong Kong governor general who oversaw the ICAC in Hong Kong answered to the democratically elected British Prime Minister. Hong Kong offers an example of a strong executive, accountable to a democratically elected leader, with wide discretion to pursue a mandate. Using a combination of new rules and education dramatically reduced corruption and changed public attitudes toward bribery its practice.

To quote Tagore: “Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake”

Also read:

(R Vijayaraghavan has been a professional journalist for more than four decades, specialising in finance, business and politics. He conceived and helped to launch Business Line, the financial daily of The Hindu group. He can be contacted at

.)