The democracy of corruption

Our country has been going through an interesting process for the last 22 years. This process is a paradoxical one regarding where, how, what, when, and in what way the parties defend their positions. In this process, we are living with the contradictions of who is a traitor, who is a patriot, who is a democrat, who is a nationalist, and who is national in terms of democracy. In the 70s and 80s, those who defended the social state, modernity, the fair distribution of national income, and a life of brotherhood always faced police intervention, yet after the 80s and 2000s, those who had problems with all these values came to power. Before our country completed its democracy and democratic state process and evolution, we introduced the concept of advanced democracy to the history of science and democracy, and in the rhetoric of the current political regime, our country is experiencing “advanced democracy.” So, what is democracy? What is it not? If we analyze this well and grasp it correctly, I think the paradox I am describing will be better understood. 

Although the history of the concepts of democracy, development, and corruption dates back to very ancient times, the relationship between them has always been researched and debated. The democracy levels of countries are measured by various indices. While there are many indices that measure democracy in countries, the most accepted one is the Freedom House Democracy Index. The Freedom House Democracy Index rates countries from 1 to 7 based on political rights and civil liberties, and within this framework, it classifies countries as free, partly free, and not free. From this perspective, a Democracy Index value of 1 represents the highest grade in terms of democracy, while 7 represents the lowest grade, that is, a “not free” country. Therefore, those with a score of 1 represent the most developed democracies, while those with a score of 7 indicate an authoritarian and even totalitarian structure where democracy does not exist.  

Corruption, in its most general definition, is the use of public power for private interests. The perception of corruption is also measured globally. The main ones among these are the “Corruption Perceptions Index,” “Bribe Payers Index,” “Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Barometer,” and “International Business Corruption Index.” One of the most important of these is the “Corruption Perceptions Index.” In this index, where the score value ranges between 0 and 10, “0” indicates the highest degree of corruption, and “10” indicates the lowest degree of corruption. 

The phenomenon of corruption and democracy also affects economic development. Economic development, in its most basic definition, is the increase in the welfare level of the people. When viewed within the historical process, it is seen that there is a relationship between democracy and development or between democracy and corruption. While corruption is an exceptional problem in developed countries, it appears as a structural problem in underdeveloped and developing countries. It has been observed that, especially in underdeveloped and developing countries, the political structure uses democracy to increase corruption, resulting in a decrease in democracy, whereas in developed countries, democracy reduces corruption. 

In situations where human development increases and corruption decreases, the level of democracy rises; in situations where human development and corruption increase, corruption rises and the level of democracy falls. When we look at all countries, it is a fact that decreasing corruption raises the level of democracy. As a result, there is a direct relationship between corruption and democracy. As corruption increases, democracy decreases, and as corruption decreases, democracy increases. In countries like ours, where democratic consciousness is not sufficiently developed, it can be said that corruption uses democracy as a tool. 

It is difficult to provide a scientific definition of democracy in our country. However, if you stand up and claim economic democracy and the democracy of corruption while saying “let there be no political democracy and social democracy,” then there is no democracy in that country! As long as economic democracy, political democracy, and social democracy grow under equal conditions, one can speak of democracy in that country. Otherwise, as Y.R. Simon said, “The technological society, by creating the individual loneliness of the mass phenomenon, invites the totalitarian state and ends the age of democracy.” In the absence of democracy, the democracy of corruption takes power.