Bribery

Posted on May 27, 2007
Filed Under Crime, Culture | 19 Comments

Uruguay is known as one of the least corrupt countries in Latin America, after Chile. This does not mean however that corruption does not exist there. In my travels in Uruguay, I’ve seen a number of instances of both solicitation and offers of bribes, most often in the context of highway patrols or border crossing.

The most recent of these was a run in with a corrupt trooper last December. We had been staying at a lovely cabaña in La Paloma, but after a few days we had explored all we could on bikes. When we inquired about renting a car, the owner of the cabaña, an Argentinean, offered to rent us his car at a very attractive price. The car of course had Argentinean license plates and was a bit old and run down, but all the papers seemed in order, so we agreed.

We drove along the scenic route 10 and visited many of the beaches east of La Paloma. By the time we reached Aguas Dulces and tried to find gas, we were told that we either needed to go to Castillos or all the way back to La Paloma. Since we were low on gas, we had no choice but to head to Castillos.

After filling the tank, we decided to take a major road, route 9, as a shortcut. About 15 minutes later, we saw an agent of the Caminera standing by the side of the road and he gestured for us to stop. I handed him the car papers and my Brazilian driver’s license. I had debated using my Massachusetts license, but I thought that would only complicate matters.

After quickly examining my papers, he told me that I needed a notarized permission to drive the vehicle, because it was not registered in Uruguay. He started a lengthy enumeration of what he could do and what he should do, including taking us to the nearest station and confiscating the vehicle After all, the vehicle could be stolen, etc. Since I had come across this type of situation before, I played the naïve fool, hoping to be pitied.

I think he started to worry that I was not getting it. So he went back to his cruiser shuffled some papers, then called me out of the car (just out of hearing distance of my wife) and started to speak in pretty good Portuguese, repeating the whole range of possible scenarios in a most jovial and friendly manner. I then switched to my plan B, and started to reciprocate the friendliness with a dose of respect, emphasizing that I am a simple Brazilian tourist with no money (otherwise why would I be riding in a borrowed beat up car).

I asked if there was anyway we could do to resolve this matter quickly. He said he was sure there was. I then asked if it would be OK if I were to make a “contribution” to the police, he said yes. I went to the car got 200 pesos and folded it four ways. In a very discreet way, I dropped it inside the cruiser, next to the arm handle and said: I know it is not much but it’s what I have.

He shook my hand, thanked me and only then told the real reason he had stopped me: my headlights were not on, as required by a recent law. Throughout the whole thing the trooper was sincerely friendly.

When we got back, we invited the owners to join us for some wine and cheese at our cabaña. We related our adventure to them and had a great laugh at how typical this is in Latin America. But they said that 100 pesos would have been more than enough. The owners were both such wonderful people and we had such a wonderful evening, that the trooper incident seemed well worth what I paid.

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19 Responses to “Bribery”

urufish on May 27th, 2007 8:36 pm

Well, there’s another category cost of living in Uruguay wins out over America. Traffic fines (or in this case, bribes). Can you imagine any infraction or paying off anyone in America with $10? Even in Louisiana
BTW, the world gets smaller. Castillos is where my wife was born. We sometimes go there to visit her grandparents grave.
Brazzie on May 27th, 2007 8:53 pm

I must say I was unsure about what amount to offer, but since that was all the cash we had on hand, the decision was easy. I suspect that if I were driving a fancier car, I would have needed to be looser with my contribution.

I have been to Castillos a few times in the past, passing through. Although I don’t think there’s much happening there economically nowadays.
Ant on May 27th, 2007 9:38 pm

I have yet to see an instance of corruption here in the month that I’ve been here. But coming from a place where bribes and “baksheesh” are second nature… It would take quite a bit for me to notice.
JP on May 29th, 2007 9:55 pm

We have started to promote the culture of denouncing such abuses. Locals should learn from foreigners to speak out and let go pragmatically. But also foreigners ought to denounce more often when they are ripped off. I am beginning to start collect as much evidence as I could to be able to denounce to the authorities. I hope others go along with me.
Lisa on May 30th, 2007 12:34 pm

JP,
What do you mean by “speak out and let go pragmatically”? Is there a mechanism or hotline to report corruption? Which authorities?
JP on May 31st, 2007 1:43 am

No, just gather enough evidence (information and proof) and find the way to denounce effectively: Lawyer, police station, court!
Lisa on May 31st, 2007 10:58 am

Sorry JP… but that sounds like wishful thinking. I believe that corruption is a systemic problem and need specific systemic solutions (e.g. denouncement hotlines, authority infrastructure , laws, internal controls, consequences, public information) whether it is through govt or non-govt organization. Unfortunately, I think it is difficult to imagine combatting corruption one person at a time (unless it is through votes).
JP on June 4th, 2007 5:43 am

Lisa,

I know we have consumer protection www.defcon.gub.uy I want to create a website to denounce abuses from Uruguayan realtors, landlords and immigration consultants at first place. Next step would be to start tacking other fields. Gradually. Things take time in UY, but justice eventually takes place!
Brazzie on June 4th, 2007 8:25 am

Hi JP, Your dedication is commendable.

One problem you’ll encounter is that corruption often involves two willing partners (like in my case above). Therefore the approach you are proposing would not work well because few would be willing to come forward. And without proof you expose yourself to a lawsuit for defamation.

Also, when engaging the population in this fight, it is important that a corrective infrastructure exists so that the initiative has a remote chance of working. This is not unlike recycling, in the sense that it needs more than just willing collectors, a whole chain is required to make it effective.

I think it is important to frame it in a way that does not give false hopes to the public. Otherwise it can actually cause more harm than good, since next time someone wants to do something similar people will say: why bother, nobody is ever prosecuted.
Shirley on June 5th, 2007 5:44 am

JP — If “to denounce effectively” means “Lawyer, police station, court!”, then I agree with Brazzie and Lisa, and would add my encouragement to explore more effective and peaceful ways to bring about change. Lawsuits definitely have their place, but if you create a culture of lawsuits, you may find the cure to be worse than the disease.
Ant on June 6th, 2007 4:21 pm

Brazzie,

About the comment you have made about corruption involving 2 willing partners…
I would like to know how you, as the person who was approached for the bribe, would turn the other person down.
Brazzie on June 6th, 2007 5:15 pm

Good point. Technically, he did not ask for money. All he did was explain to me what he “could do” and what he “should do”; and then repeat it more slowly and clearly when I failed to bribe him on his first attempt.

If I really, really did not want to bribe him and did not mind having the car towed, finding a way to get to Rocha to pay the fines/towing, contacting the owner in La Paloma to get a ride to the police station to retrieve the his car, I guess I could have pretended that I did not understand what he was alluding to. Who knows, maybe he would have let me go. My point is I think I am at least 20% guilty, maybe more.
Ant on June 11th, 2007 5:28 pm

Your moral dilemma would have been solved had he asked you outright.

“Give me 200 pesos or you go to jail”
Robert Handen on June 16th, 2007 7:12 am

I have paid extra in Brazil to have paperwork expedited. I was told to pay up or wait 6-12 months.
Perhaps it is better to go with the flow, pay 10 bucks and be on your way, rather than losing a day or two of your life waiting to verify papers at a police station. I was once locked in a small jail cell in Tumbes, Peru. The private wanted 10 dollars from me and the other American on a bus from Lima, as a fee for “not searching luggage.” This was 26 years ago. I was 18 and pissed off. Tumbes was a disgusting little border town back then and I’ll wager not much has changed there. Avoid it if you can.
Brazzie on June 16th, 2007 1:35 pm

I don’t blame you, the morally correct action in a given situation is rarely the convenient one.

For readers interested in knowing where Tumbes, Peru is, check the links below.

http://www.wikimapia.org/#y=-3584695&x=-80441895&z=9&l=0&m=a&v=2

http://www.masitravel.com/imagecenter/tumbes.htm
Cori on June 20th, 2007 7:12 pm

Many words can be said about corruption, baksheesh, choriso or propina in these various supposed second and third world-like countries.
Is it abnormal? Inmoral? Inacceptable? Should we fiercely fight against?

I don’t know but what I know is that generally in these countries the amount of money we have to pay the government is impressively much lower than what most of the governments of our supposed First-world countries take (rob) from us…and they generally don’t ask with a lot of tact, diplomacy and kindness.
They just call it TAX and this legal robbery account for much more than the yearly cost of the various “presents” we can be yearly asked by “friendly” policemen or any other “authority of these countries were this custom is on use.

So each time I am proposed to “contribute” I do it with pleasure and a sincere smile, not to say with thanks, thinking to the great tax economy I am doing by living in these nice countries
Ant on July 23rd, 2007 4:04 pm

I didnt think it would happen to me here. We were driving a rented car on Ruta 3 yesterday. We had our headlights on, but the light on the driver’s side was not working. We were stopped by a very polite officer. Unlike Brazzie’s encounter, he came directly to the point and slowly repeated himself at least 5 times… with something to the effect of “why dont you just pay me here and I wont put anything on your permanent record tied to your passport?”. It also took a lot longer because none of us are fluent in Spanish.

I don’t know why, but he wanted a lot more than just 200 pesos. He started with 1600 and settled for 800 after an hour. Highway robbery, anyone?

He also discouraged us from the other option of just paying the fine and moving on. I’m not sure if that would have been a bad idea, but not knowing what would happen if we took that route, we decided to pay him and move on.
Brazzie on July 23rd, 2007 4:12 pm

Wow Ant, that is quite a story!

I had read in another blog that the Lights On law had become an ATM machine for the troopers of the Caminera.

It is a pity you did not know enough Spanish or you could have called his bluff or maybe haggled for a better “deal”.
Ant on July 23rd, 2007 5:45 pm

Something I forgot to mention, just as we were getting ready to leave the spot, he flagged down a Toyota Corolla with an Argentinian license plate.

Bribery

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