Corruption in the Soviet Union explained

Corruption in the Soviet Union and Soviet Russia was observed since the early days of the Soviet Russia and until the last days of the Soviet Union. Corruption happened at all levels of positions of power, including political corruption.

History

Early years

Already on May 2, 1918, Moscow Revtribunal heard the case of four members of the Investigative Committee accused of bribery and blackmailing.^{[1] [2] [3]} On May 8, 1918, the "Decree on Bribery" was signed by Lenin, which punished both givers and takers.^{[4] [5]}

In February 1920, a special commission, Rabkrin (People's Commissariat of the Workers' and Peasants' Inspection) was set to combat two major plagues, inefficiency and corruption at all levels of administration.

Brezhnev and later

Corruption at highest levels had grown considerably during Brezhnev's tenure had become a major problem to the Soviet Union's economic development by the 1980s. When Andropov came to power, he initiated a nationwide anti-corruption campaign.

Notable cases

Brezhnev era

• Vasil Mzhavanadze, Georgian high party functionary, publicly accused of corruption, but left without criminal prosecution
• Soviet fish mafia
• Soviet fur mafia
• Uzbek cotton scandal

investigations continued well into the late 1980s, during Breshnev's, Andropov's and Gorbachev's times

Andropov

• case (Russian: Елисеевское дело, also known as the Mosprodtorg case, Russian: дела Моспродторга); large-scale theft/misappropriation of foodstuff goods and bribery^[6]
• Technopromexport case ended in executions of its director Yuri P. Smelyakov and his deputy V.A. Pavlov and long prison terms for several other persons.^[7] Among accusations was a large kickback while contracting the works at the Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant in Finland.^[8]
• Nikolai Shchelokov

Gorbachev era

• Brezhnev's family, Yuri, Galina and Yuri Churbanov, were investigated for corruption during Mikhail Gorbachev's administration.^[9] Churbanov was sentenced to twelve years in prison on charges of large-scale embezzlement and corruption in the context of the Uzbek cotton scandal. By December 1988 Churbanov had been stripped of all state honours, and sent to a labour camp. Galina, along with the rest of Brezhnev's family, lost all their state privileges.
• 1990-1993: ANT case about alleged smuggling of T-72 tanks abroad

See also

• Second economy of the Soviet Union
• Nomenklatura

Further reading

• «Ну и почем нынче судья?» Как чиновники в СССР дружили с миллионерами и торговали должностями на Кавказе [“Well, how much is a judge today?” How officials in the USSR were friends with millionaires and were selling job positions in the Caucasus] (retrieved February 29, 2024)
• Irwin Silber, Socialism: What Went Wrong?, 1994

Notes and References

1. Liu Xianzhong, 苏联时期的腐败及其成因 (Corruption and its causes during the Soviet era)
2. Pavel Sorokun, Исторический очерк возникновения и развития взяточничества и коррупции в России
3. https://indem.ru/corrupt/whoww/112.htm Часть 1. Коррупция в России
4. https://www.hist.msu.ru/ER/Etext/DEKRET/18-05-08.htm Декрет о взяточничестве
5. Финогентова Ольга Евгеньевна, Понятие взятки и ответственность за нее в советском законодательстве 1918-1926 гг
6. https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/1650138 Бриллианты и икра
7. News: The New York Times. 2 High Soviet Officials Are Executed For Graft. 1 October 2018 . 14 January 1984 . en.
8. Алексей Горшков, Нет повести печальнее на свете
9. News: Geldern, James von . Our Little Father . Soviethistory.org . 4 February 2011 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110722164638/http://www.soviethistory.org/index.php?page=subject&SubjectID=1980brezhnev&Year=1980 . 22 July 2011 .