"The Curse of Corruption in Europe's East"
Corruption as an Inherent Trait of Eastern European Countries
General info
Author: Dan Bilefsky
Newspaper: The New York Times
Publishing date: October 26 2012
Retrieved from: Link
Summary:
The article starts with the what seems to be a scene in a drama movie: Adrian Nastase trying to kill hilmself when charged with corruption. This event serves as an example of both political instability and efforts to eliminate corruption.
However, the situation in Romania is not singular, because “endemic corruption” is visible all over Eastern and Central Europe and the Balkans. However, when corruption is fought against, it is done in a rather violent manner. Adrian Nastase’s trials are quickly reviewed, but the emphasis is put on its politicization.
Analysis:
The article deals, at large, with Adrian Nastase’s charges of corruption and the way in which he reacted. However, this single event is enough for the author to draw conclusions about corruption in Eastern Europe in general. Romania’s inability to “root out” corruption stems from its communist past and lack of democratic traditions and institutions. But the predicament extends to an entire part of the European continent and “this is Romania” seems to become “this is Eastern Europe”.
The relationship between the European Union and its new, Eastern European, members is similar to the relation between a mature, rational person and a childish one. This is suggestive of what Said explained in Orientalism to be the relationship between a strong and a weak partner (Said, Orientalism, 40). The situation can also be related to what Vesna Goldsworthy called “the Balkan threat”: by not following the rules, the new members fall short of the standards imposed by the European Union and inhibit the development of the whole union.
The intricate plot of Adrian Nastase’s arrest is used as an example of how the judicial cases of corruption are debatable. The whole article strives to prove long-held assumptions on Romania’s incapacity to change and to extend these assumptions to the other Eastern European countries.
