NCJ Number
85034
Journal
International and Comparative Law Quarterly Volume: 30 Issue: 2 Dated: (1981) Pages: 281-296
Date Published
1981
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This comparative analysis of economic and its punishment in the Khrushchev and Brezhnev eras in the Soviet Union shows a shift of emphasis from the enforcement of moral absolutes under Khrushchev to a more discriminating enforcement according to a behavior's functional utility for economic development.
Abstract
The broad categories of economic crime examined are administrative corruption within the government sector and other types of offenses which involve primarily private citizens. Khrushchev tended to treat economic laws and regulations as moral absolutes, without reference to their facilitation or obstruction of broader economic goals. The Brezhnev regime has scaled down the norms thought appropriate for officials and citizens and has shown discrimination among economic crimes according to their utility for development. Thus, report padding has been reduced in practice to a misdemeanor or less; the old distinction between mercenary abuse of authority and embezzlement has reemerged; the comprehensive laws on bribery have been substantially mitigated by informal rules; and black-market bureaucracy, speculation, and expediting have been largely decriminalized. This lenient approach derives primarily from the experience of Khrushchev's campaign, which demonstrated that the regime cannot curtail the dysfunctional impact of economic crime without sacrificing its functional utility. The Brezhnev regime has tolerated economic crime as a means of staving off institutional reform of the weak and inflexible political system. Fifty-four footnotes are listed. (Author summary modified))