Q3.

What might account for the different levels of political corruption in your own
country and your country's nearest neighbour?

Cases I can examine:

Jordan-Isreal
Jordan-Lebanon
Jordan-Syria
Jordan-Saudi Arabia

Some Notes:

My thesis would be centred around those points:

- The lack of accountability to the law, some individuals are considered above the law. So
examine the powers of the judiciary and parliament, what anti corruption laws exist and
how they are applied. How free are elections? What is the relative power of the executive
and the legislature? Who has the power of veto over legislation? How free is the press?
Are state institutions including the police relatively independent? what opportunities are
there for challenge and protest?

- Significant leaders that were tried for corruption: Benjamin Netynhahu- Isreal, and
Bashar Al-Asad- Syria.
- For the sake of comparison, Corruption Percetions Index where 0 is the highest level of
corruption and 100 is the least. Jordan has a score of 47. Saudi Arabia has a score of 51.
Israel has a score of 63. There are no figures for Syria or Iraq. This measures government
corruption.
- Look for Transparency International Berlin for the data source.
Additional points I can incorporate in the essay:

- Grand Corruption at the National Level: involving high-level officials and reflects
an abuse of power.
- Petty Corruption at the Local Level: involving low-level officials, such as police of-
ficers or local bureaucrats, demanding bribes or favours in exchange for services
or permits. (I can use Lebanon as an example here).
- Political Cronyism: involving the appointment of unqualified or under-qualified in-
dividuals to positions of power based on personal relationships rather than merit.
This type of corruption can undermine the effectiveness of government institu-
tions and lead to a lack of public trust in the government. (Syrian government,
Jordanian government, Israeli government)
- Electoral Fraud: involving manipulating the results of elections through voter in-
timidation, ballot stuffing, or other means. This type of corruption undermines the
legitimacy of democratic processes and can lead to political instability.(Syrian
government, Israeli government)
- Influence Peddling: involving using one's position of power to influence policy or
decision-making in exchange for personal gain. This can involve lobbying efforts,
backroom deals, or other forms of illicit influence. (Israeli government, Syrian
government)