CROATIA RANKS 47TH AMONG 91 STATES RESEARCHED FOR CORRUPTION

ZAGREB, June 27 (Hina) - Croatia is 47th among 91 countries researched in connection with corruption by Transparency International (TI), an association combating corruption, the president of the Croatian branch, Josip Kregar, said on Wednesday. Citing the main reasons for lack of more success in combating corruption, Kregar mentioned the "inertia" of legislative bodies and their services, and the government's unwillingness to be resolute in insisting on the implementation of corruption prevention measures. He conveyed the TI experts' warning that it was imperative to urgently reform the judiciary, change the way of financing of political parties, and change a series of laws which should prevent more corruption within state institutions. The view that Croatia is a very corrupted country should be a grave signal to the government to implement reforms, the TI says. Even though the 47th position on the list is a positive move of three to four places in relation to last year, TI still sees Croatia as a very corrupted country on all levels. Croatia is among the countries which made the most headway, said Kregar, adding a "mild progress" was nevertheless a good result which was important in view of accessing the European Union. According to the TI research, the least corrupted are Scandinavian and the most corrupted African countries, Russia, and the Ukraine. (hina) ha sb