NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Prior to 1989, the Communists indirectly controlled the government of the Soviet Union. It was during the Mikhail Gorbachev era in which his openness measure of reform was challenged by the explosion of the nuclear reactor at Chernobyl on April 26, 1986. This incident brought about change which was subsequent to an open discussion of poverty, the waste of resources, and the Afghan conflict. Efforts of reform were made by Eastern Europe leaders to remove the Communists leaders. In 1989, there was a celebration over the seeming victory of democracy and capitalism over communism in the Western part of the world.
Ronald Reagan's evil empire had become a prospective partner. However, the Russian economy had not responded well to the restructuring. The strength of the Russian government had fallen back into the hands of Communists and ultranationalisms. More importantly, Russian politics, economy and society had been plagued with organized crime known as the Russian Mafia.
On February 12, 1993, President Boris Yeltsin stated that "organized crime has become a direct threat to Russia's strategic interests and national security" (Talalayev). The irony of the situation is that the services responsible for the national security are a part of the problem because of internal corruption. Intelligence reports emanating out of Russia peg the numerical size of the Russian Mafia (Mafia) at 100, 000 members owing allegiance to 8, 000 stratified crime groups who control 70 - 80 % of all private business and 40 % of the nations wealth (Lindberg). The criminal underworld, known to its members as the vorovskoi mir (Thieves Society or Thieves World), has existed on the margins of Russian life for centuries (Handelman 9). The early Bolsheviks inspired their paramilitary culture with rituals and codes of honor.
In the seventeenth century, a typical tactic used to avoid betrayal to the enemy was to kill their wives and children before going on a robbery. Russian gang leaders in the nineteenth century, however, developed a somewhat more humane way of ensuring that family ties did not supersede the criminal bond: they encouraged followers to marry women already in the criminal milieu, such as the daughters of other thieves or prostitutes (Handelman 31). During the Communist era, they seemed to be obscured from society as a silent partner in the black market economy. But, by 1985 when Gorbachev came into power, most major Russian cities already had powerful organized gangs (Handelman 9).
While in their silent years! , they accumulated enough wealth to endure the failure of the old system and benefit from the new one. Russian organized crime groups use threats and violence to penetrate business activities making it almost impossible for businesses to be profitable without being constrained by the Mafia and extortion. Although there are many groups in the Russia Mafia, one of the largest gangs is the Solntsevskaya. The Solntsevskaya has around 5, 000 members and specializes in drugs and gun smuggling but is not averse to extortion (The Rise and Rise... ). They were founded in 1980 by one of Russias most feared criminals, Vyatcheslav Little Japanese Ivanov. Owning banks seemed an easier task than simply having legitimate institutions hold their laundered money.
The Solntsevskaya took over the Russian Exchange Bank in September 1992, allegedly replacing the accountants and financial managers with Mafia employees hired to oversee money laundering, embezzlement, and other illegal operations (Lindberg). Mob bosses everywhere could not sustain their empire without the help of corrupt police and politicians. In the Ukraine, government officials are often bribed or threatened by organized crime groups. The countrys privatization program, for example, was undermined by former Party officials and a criminal elite, who appropriated state resources by stripping assets from banks and enterprises (Shelley). Although these government officials are sometimes forced into corruption, there are many cases where the corruption is voluntary. Considering that the average annual income is less than US$ 2500, a life of corruption is not a very difficult decision for most to make.
This attractive lifestyle may sometimes even allure people to government positions because of the opportunities that this status brings. There was one siting by an FBI agent of a criminal associate of one of Russias most feared crime bosses at a tony Republican Party fundraiser in Dallas, Texas (Friedman). With so much corruption among the leaders of the country, it is a very complex problem to solve. Organized crime groups are becoming more and more dangerous everyday. They are involved in money laundering, prostitution, extortion, drug smuggling, and many other illegal acts. There are around 10, 000 fatal shootings a year in Russia, 600 of which are contract killings.
One of the most dangerous groups is a notorious Russian mob family near Prague called the Red Mafia. Led by a 52 -year old Ukrainian-born Jew, Section Mogilevich, the mobs young enforcers who are trained by veterans of the Afghanistan war are infamous for their extreme brutality (Friedman). Their trademarks are stabbings, torture, mutilation and butchering. One Moscow martial-arts teacher describes the difference between the Mafia in the West and those in Russia: Our mafia have no culture. They are simply uncultured, stupid people; you cannot reason with them.
One should be more afraid of our mafia than of yours. They kill without batting an eyelash. And you know what makes them more brazen? Why they have become involved in dishonorable things like drugs and prostitution?
Its because they have decided to merge with our government apparel (the entire civil service during the Soviet era). They think no one can fight them that way. But they lost the most important thing - the respect of the people (Handelman 174). The Russian Mafia has recently made its way into cyberspace.
Andrei Kuzmin of St. Petersburg developed a Mafia website (web) with information ranging from links to banks that offer the best rates to BMWs official website, to the latest offerings of IzhMash, the factory that makes the famed Kalashnikov automatic rifle. This site, which draws in 7, 000 hits per day, has what every gangster needs at his fingertips. However, in order to read the Russian, your computer must have the Cyrillic font installed. The epigram for the site reads: Everything about a businessman should be wonderful: his face, his mobile phone and that final shot to the head (Russian Mafia Website... ). There is also an area on the site which monitors Yeltsin's state of health around the clock.
The Russian Mafia has proven to be a significant force in delaying the reform process. They seem to be threatening to take over the nation's economy. The protectionism offered by the organized crime groups has had an effect on the Russian economy by creating immense inflation to an already weak market. Because the business owners must pay the 20 % protection costs to the Mafia, the prices of goods and services are raised enormously. This has lead to a trend towards nationalism and separatism in Russia. Also, much of the extorted money takes a substantial amount of wealth out of Russia because it ends up in other countries.
Furthermore, the organized crime groups deter foreign investment in the country. Foreign investors are hesitant about starting operations in Russia for fear of becoming a victim of the Mafia. The Mafia has already succeeded in driving out a Canadian-owned wholesale electronic good franchise, an Italian merchant of leather goods, and an Estee Lauder shop (Washington Post C 2). About 200 Russian organized crime groups have migrated beyond the Russian boundaries and now operate worldwide.
They are present in many U. S. cities and have arrangements with American, Sicilian, and Colombian crime lords. Yeltsin said, The criminals are challenging us. They think their time has come.
They think Russia belongs to them (Phinney). Over 2, 000 officials are being investigated on suspicions of corruption. Russian criminals are now known to control a global network of extortion, large-scale auto theft, international prostitution, financial fraud and manipulation, metals and minerals smuggling, and contract murder (Phinney). So what is being done about the destruction to society that the organized crime groups have caused?
Some business owners have taken a stand against the crime by creating their own company security and stopping protection payments. Several steps have been taken to stop crime such as protectionism and the Russian Mafia. Yeltsin has granted the police various powers to confront these problems. The decree Yeltsin issued permits police to detain organized crime suspects for thirty days without cause, search offices and homes without a warrant, and inspect the finances of suspects (Fifty-two Percent... 11). Despite these efforts, little has changed in terms of crime growth. While the polices elite Berkut (Eagle) force conducts frequent high-profile commando-style raids, they appear to catching only the small fry (The Rise and Rise... ).
The overabundance of corruption places a stronghold on capturing the leaders of these gangs. Since the Russian Mafia has become a powerful force worldwide, in March 2000, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) set up its first office in Budapest, the home of many Mafia leaders. FBI agents will have the right to carry weapons and, in conjunction with their Hungarian counterparts, to make arrests (Bonner). Because the crimes are a direct threat to the U. S. , the chief of the FBI organized-crime division felt that it was necessary to have operations at the root of the problem. U.
S. officials say that if the FBI office in Budapest succeeds, it could be a model for similar offices in other regions struggling against Russian organized crime, including the Baltic states, Nigeria and South Africa (Bonner). Although Russia has a long way to a safe nation free from crime, there may be a light ahead in the future if the FBI is successful. Bibliography: (1) Bonner, Raymond. "FBI Goes Global: New Hungary Office to Hunt For 'Russian Mafia'. Manchester Guardian 22 February 2000 23 Apr 2001 web (2) "Fifty-Two Percent Believe Mafia is Running the Country. " Current Digest of the Post-Soviet Press 8 October 1997: 11 (3) Friedman, Robert I.
The Most Dangerous Mobster in the World. Village Voice. May 20 - 26, 1998. 23 Apr 2001 web (4) Handelman, Stephen. Comrade Criminal. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1995 web (5) "In Russia, the Mafia Seizes the Commanding Heights of Economy. " The Washington Post 12 February 1995: C 2 (6) Lindberg, Richard and Markovic, Vesna. "Organized Crime Outlook in the New Russia: Russia is Paying the Price of a Market Economy in Blood." Search International 23 Apr 2001 (7) Phinney, David.
Russian Mafia Poses Threat. " ABCNEWS. com 29 Sep 2000. 25 Apr 2001 web (8) The Rise and Rise of the Russian Mafia. BBC News. 21 Nov 1998 23 Apr 2001 web (9) Russian Mafia Website: Whos Running Russia? 23 April 2001 web (10) Shelley, Louise I. Organized Crime and Corruption Are Alive and Well in Ukraine.
Transition Newsletter. Jan - Feb 1999. 23 Apr 2001 web (11) Talalayev, Gennadiy. "Russia: Conference on Combating Crime: Yeltsin Outlines Ways of Combating Crime" BBC Summary of World Broadcasts 15 Feb 1993
Free research essays on topics related to: organized crime, russian economy, government officials, market economy, money laundering
Research essay sample on Organized Crime Russian Economy
