71% of Chileans perceive a high level of corruption in the country and in the State, according to T13, which reported the results of the Claves Ipsos No. 55 study. The polling firm Ipsos produced it together with Chile Transparente, an organization devoted to promoting integrity in public life, and surveyed 1,000 people. The source does not specify the fieldwork dates.
Political parties lead the mentions, with 74% associating them with corruption. They are followed by the Congreso Nacional (Chile's national legislature), with 70%; the courts, with 59%; the municipalidades (local governments), with 55%; and the State, with 54%. Of the 15 institutions evaluated, 12 appear more closely linked to corruption than to integrity.
At the other end, the Policía de Investigaciones (PDI, Chile's investigative police) scored 37% association with integrity. Carabineros de Chile (the national uniformed police) reached 36% and the Armed Forces 35%. In the private and civil sphere, entrepreneurs and small business owners led the perception of honest conduct, with 69%.
Perception shifts with proximity. The 71% who see high corruption in the country drops to 54% when assessing their own region, to 40% for their comuna (municipality) and to 35% in interpersonal relationships. 41% believe there is high corruption in companies.
A comparison with the last three years shows a decline in the association with corruption for most actors. However, the courts and the media registered a deterioration. According to T13, the report does not detail the figures from previous surveys.
Alejandra Ojeda Mayorga, director of Public Studies at Ipsos Chile, pointed to the three branches of government. She said their strong association with corruption reveals "a significant erosion of trust in the proper functioning of democracy".
Municipalities are poorly rated. Only 19% believe they account transparently for the use of public funds, and 29% think they have tools to prevent corruption. 46% believe mayors and council members put their personal interests ahead of the community.
Distrust extends to the bodies that fight corruption. 44% say they do not trust them, compared with 22% who do. Michel Figueroa, executive director of Chile Transparente, called for "taking decisive measures to confront and curb corruption cases".
For municipalities, respondents prioritize increasing control over public resources (56%), investigating and sanctioning breaches of integrity (51%) and making the criteria for distributing social aid transparent (50%). In the event of a reform of public employment, 61% call for transparency in the criteria for selecting civil servants.
