Mafia and Corruption in
PS 388. Instructor: Myagkov
Mikhail
Class Time: MW 830-950 am
101 LLCS
Office Hours M
130-230
Email Myagkov@uoregon.edu
GTFs: Bhattacharya Debasis dbhattac@uoregon.edu
Golya Tamas tgolya@uoregon.edu
Steinmetz Jay steinmet@uoregon.edu
News Articles to Read:
Article #1 Medvedev
Promises to Fight Corruption
Article #2 http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/mar/26/rampant-corruption-in-russia/
Article#3 ( corruption index) http://www.infoplease.com/world/statistics/2008-transparency-international-corruption-perceptions.html
Article #4 ( corruption
in Russian Police Academy )
Russia Opens Bolshoi Theater
Corruption Probe: http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/World/Story/STIStory_429697.html
Interior Ministry: Russia takes down 750 militants in 2009: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20091007/156385557.html
Chances of finding Politkovskaya Killer fades: http://russiatoday.com/Top_News/2009-10-07/chances-finding-politkovskaya-killers.html
Ingush Leader Dissmises Government amid Corruption Scandal: http://en.rian.ru/russia/20091005/156357681.html
In Moscow, Secretary of
State Clinton Pushes Russian Tolerance and Openness: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/15/world/europe/15diplo.html?_r=1&ref=europe
Opposition Parties Stage Walkout of Duma, Claim Vote Fraud: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/15/world/europe/15russia.html?ref=europe
Russia Gas Pipeline Heightens East Europe’s Fears: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/13/world/europe/13pipes.html?ref=europe
Corruption: Russia's Economic Stumbling Block: http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/aug2009/gb20090827_771618.htm
Analysts: Russia's Entrenched Corruption Defies Solutions: http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2009-08/2009-08-06-voa45.cfm?CFID=310854581&CFTOKEN=91779542&jsessionid=de301b8da159d426af074d683f5221762773
Russians are talking about adopting
one party Chinese model.
General Description
In recent years, stories about Russia in the western media have been full of references to terms such as "Mafia," "Corruption," "Money Laundering" and "Election Fraud." Most western observers (and most Russian citizens as well) seem to agree that corruption is the single most important obstacle that undermines efforts toward Russian reforms. New Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev recently outlined fighting corruption as the top priority for his government. At the same time the Transparency International ranked Russia’s corruption as 147th worst in the world ( out of 180 reported). We will review a number of Russian and foreign sources to confirm whether the situation in Russia is truly as dire as multiple sources suggest. There have been claims, for example, that "The Russian mob controls everything in the country, including nuclear weapons, " and that "Recent elections have been stolen by corrupt politicians close to the ruling elite." Whether these claims are true is not as simple to establish as it might seem. This course will help students understand what has transpired in recent decades in the Russian economy and in Russian politics. To comprehend the current situation, it is necessary to study the organization, the institutions, and the power structure of Russian society. An understanding of these forces, as well as some important insights into how the Russian economy now works, will shed light on the important role of the Mafia within modern Russian society
This class will focus on Mafia
and Corruption as integral parts of Russia’s transition to democracy. We will
consider a lot of fascinating examples of criminal and Mafia related activities
in Russia. We will watch parts of a movie that is Russian equivalent of the
“Godfather”. We will also look at
theoretical aspects of how corruption can undermine democracy.
Finally, we will look at other countries around the world that are
undergoing transition to democracy, and we will compare situation with crime
and corruption in these countries to Russia.
Requirements and Grading:
Students
are expected to attend classes, discussion sessions ( if any), read the
required materials ( see below ) and follow ( on a daily basis) news reports
which concern Russia's current state of affairs. A special attention should be
paid to the reports, which concern Mafia and corruption. There will be a number
of in-class quizzes (multiple choice type answers) and two midterm essays to
test for the above requirements. Students are expected to actively participate
in in-class discussions.
Grading Policy:
The quizzes will be in the form
of multiple choice type questions covering in-class lectures and discussions.
There will be a total of 7 quizzes ( each with 12-14 multiple choice type
questions). There will be also attendance taken ( randomly). A missed
attendance will result in 3% deduction. Each quiz is worth 8% of the grade.
There will be two in-class midterm essays during the fifth and tenth
week of class. A week before the exam I will distribute a set of 12 questions
to study. We will randomly select three of them for the exam. Student will have
a choice of any two of these three,
Communication:
Due to large size of the class, all of the routine issues should be
first addressed to a GTF. I will be available for students during my regular
office hours on Monday 1130-1430. I will NOT be communicating with students via
email, unless there is an emergency.
Organization
The class will be organized as a combination of lectures on the
evolution and structure of Mafia in Russia and open in-class discussions. Below
are tentative themes of subjects to be discussed in the lectures :
Week 1.
1. Origins of contemporary corruption in Russia.
Organization and structure of the pre-1985 Soviet Union. Socialist Mafia.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 1-58; Godfather
of the Kremlin pp 11-46
Article: “The rise of Russia's crime commissars”. By: Gray, John. World Press Review, Jun94, vol. 41 Issue 6, p13
Week 2.
2. Soviet Criminal Worlds and its connection to
the state. “Vors” ( “crowned criminals)
as clones of soviet bureaucracy.
3. Role of government in a democratic society,
and problems associated with corruption as far as “collective action” is
concerned.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 59-92;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 47-77
Article: Organized Crime in Russia from the 60s through the first half of the 90s” By: Khokhriakov, Gennadii F.. Sociological Research, Sep/Oct2002, Vol. 41 Issue 5, p5-25
Week 3.
4. Role of Mafia in early political reforms in
the former Soviet Union. Introduction of money into the equation.
5. Mikhail Gorbachev’s “Perestroyka” and
“Galsnost” and its connection to Mafia
formation.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 93-116;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 78-110
Article: “Reform,
corruption, and growth: Why corruption is more devastating in Russia than in
China” . By: Larsson, Tomas. Communist & Post-Communist Studies,
Jun2006, Vol. 39 Issue 2, p265-281
Week 4.
6. Formation organization and internal structure
of organized criminal groups in Russia, and their relations with the
governments of all levels
7. Criminal economy of market reforms: “How to
Steal a Billion Rubles”.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 117-143;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 111-144
Article: “Diagnosing Corruption in Russia” . By: Popov, O.. Russian Social Science Review, Jan/Feb2005, Vol. 46 Issue 1, p19-36
Week 5.
8. “Slave Trade” and the economic reform.
9. “Privatization” as the driving force behind
formation of “state criminal groups”.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 144-206;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 171-188
Article: “From Guns to Briefcases” .By: Sokolov, Vsevolod. World Policy Journal, Spring2004, Vol. 21 Issue 1, p68-74
Week 6.
10. Emergence of “oligarchs”, and formation of
state capitalism.
11. Midterm Examination
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 207-241;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 189-212
Article: “
Week 7.
12. War in Chechnya as someone’s moneymaking
enterprise: who did that and why?
13. Corruption in the Russian Army.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 242-274;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 213-248
Article: “Their Hands in the Till: Scale and Causes of Russian Military Corruption”. By: Bukkvoll, Tor. Armed Forces & Society (Sage Publications Inc.), Jan2008, Vol. 34 Issue 2, p259-275
Week 8.
14. Role of police, prosecutors and judges in
Russia’s corrupt legal system.
15. Why
Vladimir Putin does not fight corruption and organized crime?
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 275-330;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 249-284
Article: “How is Corruption Punished in Present Day Russia? By: Skoblikov, Petr A.. European Journal of Crime, Criminal Law & Criminal Justice, 2006, Vol. 14 Issue 4, p440-449,
Week 9.
16. Russia’s foreign policy as a “tool” of corrupt
“oligarchs”
17. Election fraud in Russia’s elections.
Readings: Comrade Criminal pp 331-end;
Godfather of the Kremlin pp 285-318
Article: “Why was democracy lost in Russia’s regions? Lessons from Nizhnii Novgorod” By: Sharafutdinova, Gulnaz. Communist & Post-Communist Studies, Sep2007, Vol. 40 Issue 3, p363-382
Week 10.
18. Corruption and Organized Crime in Former
Soviet States.
19. Russia, Oil prices and elites’ incentives to changes
Article: “What RussiaMust Do to Fight Organized Crime” By: Firestone,
Thomas. Demokratizatsiya, Winter2006, Vol. 14 Issue 1, p59-65,
Preparation for writing the essay(s)
Examples of discussion topics are as follows:
·
Is
corruption in Russia a result of its communist past?
·
Is
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin going
to fight corruption?
·
Are
Gorbachev or/and Yeltsin to blame for the Mafia propagation in Russia?
·
Is
Election Fraud a real problem in Russian politics?
·
Is there
a link between Russian organized crime and international terrorism?
·
Why are
Russian people so tolerant to the widespread corruption?
·
Is war
in Chechnya on Mafia’s agenda too?
·
Is
corruption bad for Russian economy?
Readings:
Reading Package of
10 Peer-Reviewed Articles
“Godfather of the
Kremlin” by Paul Khlebnikov ( required )
"Comrade
Criminal" by Stephen Handelman (required)
“Violent
Entrepreneurs" by Vadim Volkov ( recommended)
"Bear Hunting
with Politburo" by Craig Copetas (recommended)
http://www.world-newspapers.com/russia.html
Workload
Expectations
To be successful in fulfilling the above
described requirements, students are expected to spend at least eight hours a
week working on this class. This should include the following:
1.
reading
required books
2.
reading
peer-reviewed articles
3.
attending
discussion sessions
4.
following
the recommended web sites as well as looking for their own news and stories
that are related to the topic of the class. ( highly recommended)
5.
working
on the essay study topics