File photo of the website. It invites people to share their experiences of bribery, what a bribe was for, where it took place and how much was involved. |
Imagine if you had to pay a bribe to see your newborn baby, get your water supply connected or obtain your driving licence. It's an everyday fact of life in India - but campaigners are now fighting back, using people power and the internet. "Uncover the market price of corruption," proclaims the banner on the homepage of ipaidabribe.com. It invites people to share their experiences of bribery, what a bribe was for, where it took place and how much was involved. Launched in August, the site gives Indians a chance to vent their frustrations anonymously and shine a spotlight on the impact of corruption on everyday life. "I did the driving test correctly but still the official said I was driving too slow, I realised his intention so gave him 200 Rupees and got the thing done," is a typical example of a posting. The website was the brainwave of Ramesh and Swati Ramanathan, founders of a not-for-profit organisation in Bangalore called Janaagraha which literally means "people power". "Bribery is routinely expected in interactions with government officials", Swati Ramanathan told me, "to register your house, to get your driving licence, domestic water connection, even a death certificate." Having lived in the US and the UK for several years, they were dismayed on their return to see how widespread corruption had become and decided to do something about it. The website has evolved into a consumer comparison site where people can also get information and advice in different languages on how to avoid paying bribes. So far, nearly 10,000 bribe experiences have been reported across 347 cities and 19 government departments. Solving the problem of bribery in India is not going to happen overnight. But ipaidabribe.com shows that ordinary people can be turned from the victims of corruption into part of the solution. (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies)
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想想吧,如果看看你新生的寶寶需要行賄,通自來(lái)水、考取駕照也需要塞錢的話,你會(huì)是什么心情?在印度,這就是嚴(yán)酷的現(xiàn)實(shí)。但反腐敗人士正利用大眾的力量和網(wǎng)絡(luò)對(duì)此發(fā)起反擊。 最新創(chuàng)建的“我行賄了”網(wǎng)站的首頁(yè)橫幅上寫著:“揭開(kāi)腐敗的市價(jià)?!?/p> 該網(wǎng)站邀請(qǐng)人們分享自己的行賄經(jīng)歷、行賄原因、地點(diǎn)、以及金額。 網(wǎng)站于去年八月創(chuàng)辦,使印度人有機(jī)會(huì)匿名發(fā)泄自己的怨氣,而且警示了腐敗對(duì)日常生活的影響。 比如某個(gè)很典型的貼子寫道:“我考駕照時(shí)沒(méi)出錯(cuò),但考官還是說(shuō)我開(kāi)得太慢了。我明白他的意思,給了他200盧比,就辦妥了?!?/p> 拉米什和斯瓦特?拉馬納坦想到了創(chuàng)建該網(wǎng)站的好主意。他們還曾在印度班加羅爾創(chuàng)建非盈利性機(jī)構(gòu)Janaagraha,意為“人民的力量”。 斯瓦特?拉馬納坦對(duì)記者說(shuō):“在和政府官員打交道時(shí),行賄成了慣例。登記房產(chǎn)、考取駕照、家里通水、甚至辦死亡證明都要行賄?!?/p> 兩位創(chuàng)辦者在美國(guó)和英國(guó)生活了多年,回到印度后看到腐敗盛行非常沮喪,于是決定為此做些事情。 該網(wǎng)站已經(jīng)演變?yōu)楣┫M(fèi)者的互動(dòng)交流平臺(tái),大家在這里可以得到多語(yǔ)種的如何避免行賄的信息和建議。 目前,網(wǎng)友已公布了近一萬(wàn)條行賄信息,涉及印度347個(gè)城市和19個(gè)政府部門。 在印度,解決行賄問(wèn)題并非朝夕之功。但“我行賄了”網(wǎng)站表明,普通人可以從腐敗的受害者變?yōu)楦瘮?wèn)題的解決者。 相關(guān)閱讀 過(guò)去30年印度1200萬(wàn)女胎被流產(chǎn) 印度開(kāi)展人口普查 總?cè)丝诳蛇_(dá)12億 英國(guó)發(fā)布奧運(yùn)禮節(jié)指南:別擁抱印度人 (中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語(yǔ)點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯: 馮明惠) |
Vocabulary: fact of life:any aspect of human existence that must be acknowledged or regarded as unalterable(生活中的嚴(yán)酷現(xiàn)實(shí),無(wú)法更改的事實(shí)) vent:to give free play or expression to (an emotion, passion, etc.)(表達(dá),發(fā)泄感情,尤指憤怒) brainwave: also called: brainstorm a sudden inspiration or idea(靈感;妙計(jì)) |