Comments

Thanks for your comment Michael, great to get your views. First, I agree that a small-scale studies of corruption is inadequate to understand the complexities of corruption. But, given the difficulties of measuring corruption and understanding its impacts, so are all attempts to research it. The problem with most research into corruption to date is that it has relied on the perceptions of elites (see TI’s Corruption Perception’s Index, Bribe Payers’ Index, the World Bank’s World Governance Indicators, etc). Many researchers assume that we know what corruption is and it is ultimately bad for all involved, so there is no point in understanding it from a citizen’s point of view. As a result, there is a paucity of research into what ‘corruption’ means for poor people. So while small-scale research might be inadequate to capture the totality of a broad concept like corruption, right now it is absolutely necessary. Without this analysis we will continue to come to the problem informed only/mostly by elite views. Moreover, understanding the views of the poor and marginalised should be a key concern for all of us engaged in the practice/study of development. For too long development has overlooked the views of those it is ostensibly meant to help – much to the detriment of people in developing countries. The problem with your assumption that the ‘silent masses’ would think in a particular way is that, given the support for some of the types of practices described in the study across PNG, it is likely that we would find similar results elsewhere. (Although possibly less so with urbanites, who make up a minority of the PNG population). I’m also aware that future generations are likely to suffer from today’s corruption, as are many Papua New Guineans judging by the household survey we conducted. But future generations are also likely to be subject to the same pressures of today’s Papua New Guineans, making it doubly important to understand how poverty and culture influence people’s support/rejection of corruption. Having said this, it is very difficult to speak for future generations; it’s a group whose views are impossible to survey (I’m ruling out time travel). We’ve only got people alive today to participate in our research. Second, the sympathetic respondents (who, it should be noted were a minority) did more than showing us that those who engage in corruption benefit from it. They highlight why corruption can be justified, and the difficulties that anti-corruption agencies face in changing these views. Anti-corruption efforts often focus the blame for corruption on those involved in corrupt acts. This sounds right, but it might be inadequate for garnering popular support against corruption. It also overlooks the structural violence of the state (and, it might be argued, other actors), through failing to provide essential services to the poor and marginalised. Given this, providing a link between acting ‘ethically’ and tangible development might help create better conditions for people to reject corruption. I’m not guaranteeing this will work, but I think it’s an option worth considering/testing. The relevance of such options, I think, only become apparent when garnering the views of local people and believing what they say. Of course, no one wants to encourage ‘corruption’, but we must be mindful about how it is defined across time and space. As James Scott (1972) points out many acts that the west now decries as corrupt were a part of conquering colonial regimes of the past. Likewise, the rules around developers supporting political parties has changed in the past few years in NSW. Was this type of transfer always corrupt, or only when it was legislated against due to public pressure? I think we need to be mindful of these issues if corruption is to be meaningfully addressed with the support of citizenry. Thanks again, Grant

It's more than a little mind-boggling that the PM can suggest that cutting aid is "not at odds with any aspect of foreign policy". The statement: "Redirecting flagged future increases in spending from foreign aid to domestic infrastructure should actually boost our influence in the region when it helps to bring about the stronger economy on which our international standing rests" would seem to suggest that spending on domestic infrastructure should be the primary means of enhancing foreign policy clout. (Leaving to one side, of course, whether the domestic infrastructure that is currently prioritised is the best bang for the buck in terms of domestic growth.) Interesting, too, that while aid has been subject to this fairly ruthless calculus, defence spending (where there is a timetabled target for increase as a proportion of GNI to 2% within a decade) is quarantined.

Wantok affiliation or as most would like to call it "wantok system" has been taking a lot of bashing because of its linkage to acts systematised as corrupt practises. I think there is a reckoned divide on the accepted definition of corruption according to the external 'citadels of the rule' that determine what is corruption and what is not. So another question that could be posed is "What makes corruption or acts perceived to be corrupt sometimes makes sense?" If it makes SENSE...does that mean the attributed sensibility is wrong? The most obvious 'on the fence' response would "Well it depends!" Context, context, context...It's all contextual...What is perceived as wrong in another society might not be in other settings...

Hi Grant You make a good point that corruption is anchored in a cultural, economic and social context that needs to be unpacked to appreciate how people perceive, understand, process and justify corruption. If we’re taking a zero tolerance standpoint on corruption, how can we expect corruption to be effectively addressed without fully considering and understanding the audience that the anti-corruption message needs to go to? I agree with Michael that the participants’ perceptions of corruption are possibly attributable to their proximity and likeness to the person benefiting from the actions. If a wantok got the participant their job, then they would perceive a similar story as a lesser crime. (Its a self-fulfilling prophecy - 'My wantok got my husband a job and we're good people and not corrupt, therefore its true that...'). I find the participants’ perspectives about corruption addressing poverty and as a channel for redistributing resources incredibly interesting. We’ve heard this before haven’t we? … Remember that guy that was perceived favorably in western communities… Robin Hood… This is interesting research. I’m looking forward to reading the article in full. Jen

Thanks Tess - very good point. Good to hear an example of Australia using its influence with regard to increasing engagement in the Pacific. I struggled to think of lots of examples of Australia using its influence in other multilaterals but certainly cutting funding would limit the ability to have any influence (should they choose to exercise it). Garth - yes, multiplying the two scores together might be a bit harsh - but in terms of ranking, averaging the two scores barely changes anything so in a relative sense, the rankings stay largely the same. The good performers are still top of the list and the ones that are struggling are still at the bottom. No reason we should give WHO and others a passing grade just to save their feelings! Joel

Joel, multiplying the two AMA scores together sure makes the total score look bad. I'm glad you weren't writing my school reports when I was at school. I know two wrongs don't make a right, but I did think two credits made a credit average. According to your calculations an organisation scoring 6.5 on each dimension has a total score of 42%.

Thanks for this Grant, it's great to learn more about the work you've been doing in PNG. Although ICAC only gets a brief mention here I would like to pick up on that. I actually have some quite strong reservations about the use of a mechanism such as this and I think what you have presented here actually bears some of them out. I think we need to address what the market failure is that an agency such as ICAC can address. If it is a failure of process then I don't believe introducing another component into the process will fix that and is likely to make it worse. If it is a failure of acceptance/understanding/credibility - which your work indicates may be the case in some instances then I think it is very difficult to create a state-based/derived institution that can overcome these barriers. I'd love to hear more about what your thinking is on this.

Thanks for this Joel. Another aspect of decision-making about funding to multilaterals relates to influence. By increasing its contribution to World Bank, ADB & IFC funding Australia has been able to influence programming decisions within those organisations, which has led to increased engagement in the Pacific island region - so how and where the cuts come in relation to multilaterals needs to be considered in conjunction to how and where cuts come in bilateral and regional direct funding arrangements to minimise the risk of a double hit to the overall financing.

Grant, Thanks for the article. I may in a way be "taking the bait", but I have to disagree with the notion that corruption can be beneficial. The notion that corruption can help as long as it benefits marginalised people seems to ignore the fact that every act of corruption contributes to the shaping of incentives. Specifically, the more dominant corruption is as the way of doing business in a society, the more incentive people will have to rent-seek, rather than work hard, invest or innovate. The focus group respondents simply highlighted that corruption benefits those involved. In my opinion their sympathetic responses to the petty forms of corruption probably stems from the fact that they can relate closely to those that benefited from these corrupt acts. However I feel compelled to speak for the "silent masses" that your respondents did not relate to. These are all other people in society, who did not directly benefit from the corrupt transaction, but who are negatively affected by the perverted incentives (e.g. non-merit-based allocation of jobs, resources and votes) to which it contributed and which reduce societal productivity. Crucially, societal norms and the effects of reduced productivity tend to stick around, meaning that a sizeable portion of the silent masses are constituted by future generations of PNGeans. Although corruption benefits those that participate in it, a micro analysis of corruption is inadequate because it is necessary to consider the overall consequences of each corrupt act, in the present and the future. I think we need to keep the message about corruption clear.

Nice of you to recognise Australia, Midnight. But I think you are wrong about Australia being the largest regional donor, unless it has overtaken Japan.

Mr Xanana is the one who must take the blame for the whole range of issues in Timor Leste. After more than 7 years in office he has spent more than 7 billion dollars, but still do not see any concrete results. Read this: For a wealthy nation such as Australia, it is a noble thing to do in helping third world countries like East Timor. Unlike other underdeveloped countries around the world or in our own South Pacific region in particular, East Timor is bestowed by God the abundance of natural resources, most notably are oil and gas resources. This tiny nation is receiving average 270 million US dollars every quarter in revenue from its oil and gas resources. Probably not many countries in the world (of East Timor’s size) that have similar fortune as East Timor. Let us compare East Timor with its peers in the South Pacific region such as Fiji, Vanuatu, etc. To my best knowledge, unlike East Timor, Fiji and Vanuatu do not have any significant mineral resources such as oil and gas that East Timor has. They rely much on tourism industry. But they are doing well. They progress and improve. East Timor’s annual budget is 1 billion US dollars. The question is that with this financial position, does East Timor qualify or deserve to receive foreign aid of this kind? No. East Timor does not need this kind of aid. Ideally, East Timor can support itself financially. Unfortunately, what we have been seeing until today is that after 14 years of independence, instead of moving forward, East Timor is moving backward. Let us simply count from the period when Mr Xanana Gusmao came to office as prime minister. He has been in office for more than 7 years – which means that more than 7 billion US dollar have been spent, but there is no a concrete result whatsoever. 1.5 billion dollars for 2014 budget will go down the drain. Mr Xanana's both terms in government has never been effective anyway....Billions of dollars just wasted, melted away and went down the drain. Instead of moving forward, East Timor is moving backward. Bad roads, bad hospitals, schools, bad electricity, no running water, just to name a few and you name it. Mr Xanana even has no idea and vision how to patch up a pot hole let alone to build a new road. Roads built during the Indonesian era have turned to dirt road beyond recognition and incredibly muddy during the wet season and slippery and so forth. Just as an example of comparison, during the Indonesian era, when people travelled by a public bus from Dili to Suai via Ainaro - took around 6-7 hours to get to Suai - that already included meal and toilet stops. But now it takes 15 hours from Dili to Suai. What a huge setback! What Xanana has been saying all along to tackle corruption and mismanagement and those kinds of things is simply rhetoric. Back in 2009 in his speech, Xanana was saying “if TL’s petroleum is wisely and transparently managed, it will allow us as a sovereign nation to use our own resources to improve our infrastructure, invest in health and education and grow our economy so that we can build our country and provide a brighter future for our children”. This is totally rubbish. Xanana does not even have the capacity to keep Dili clean. It is dirty, filthy, stinky, you name it let alone to build the country. Just look at the so called Dili international airport. East Timor's condition will never improve despite East Timor is among the tiny nations that earn large amount of cash revenue from its oil and gas resources. The bulk of East Timorese do not get any benefit from their natural wealth and still and remain live under the poverty line. Mr Xanana only enriches certain class of people which are the contractors that secure government or public projects. Even though they – the contractors – do botched job, poor quality of a project and even an unfinished project, they manage to get payment from the government because they bribe, connive and conspire with government authorities. They carve up the money among themselves. Then they spend the money for luxury cars, building private villas, overseas trip/holidays, purchasing properties overseas such as in Australia, Bali etc. East Timor is one of the tiny naturally rich countries but will remain poor.

It is hard to comprehend how a major housing project could be so inept. Who thought it was a good idea to move people (and especially vulnerable people) into new housing without water connected? And so on. The fact that major infrastructure gets as badly implemented as often as it does is (unfortunately) not all that surprising, but when it is basic housing, we really do need to step back a bit and ask what is going wrong. It is not the lack of information or comprehension of the issues. There is already a massive literature on housing, as well as an extensive pool of competent commercial and international/local suppliers, and above all widespread cultural and practical knowledge around housing. We each have some vision and understanding of what housing means and what is sensible. One can only come to the depressing conclusion that no-one in authority bothered to pay any real attention to the situation and wishes of the intended recipients. No doubt there will be deeper concerns expressed about the financing and the contracting and so on, and we would all do well to accept that housing is not a simple issue, given its cultural and economic resonance. But when it comes down to it, if it becomes too hard to build simple houses, there is a serious problem that needs to be fixed. Using local suppliers imbued with an understanding of local materials and culture would probably be a good start, though there can be economic traps in that route as well..