CHECHNYA LINKS LIBRARY

Bribery is an everyday occurrence in Chechen universities

By Samira Lamayeva

CHECHNYA – In June the Kremlin-backed Chechen Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov announced a harsh anti-corruption policy for Chechen universities stating that even one attempted act of bribery would result in a headmaster’s dismissal. Once this announcement was made, however, bribery fees increased.

Last year qualified applicants had to shell out $8,000 in order to be accepted in a prestigeous faculty, for example medical. And this year that figure jumped to $10,000. But even less prestigious faculties require bribes as well.

Madina Magomadova, a former student, said she was asked for a $500 bribe to ensure her getting good grades on her 1997 admission exams at the Philology Faculty of the Chechen State University. This year the sum is $3,500. The simple rule seems to be: if you have money, you‘ll get an education.

Tamila, a journalism applicant to Chechen State University, is confident of her knowledge, yet in order to be 100 % sure, her parents turned over most of their salary to the school. So now Tamila can play her walkman during the exam, confident she’ll pass. Meanwhile, another applicant sitting nearby suspects he will not get a passing grade; he offered no bribe. 

In June the Minister of Education and Science Lema Dadayev announced that steps had been taken to stop teachers from accepting bribes and that government representatives will be present on the admission committees. Last but not least, students dissatisfied with their test results will have a right to appeal.

Dadayev pointed out that the ministry is unable to catch everyone who accepts bribes, so they’ll focus instead on the people offering them. So far this has not proven to be very successful.

This year about eleven thousand students graduated from primary and secondary schools. However, Chechen universities and colleges can only accept 4,000 of them; 560 additional school openings are available outside of Chechnya. Therefore, higher education will not be available to a majority of applicants.

Translated by Martin Šašík.

(MS/E,T)