People in Hong Kong are increasingly optimistic that corruption is under control in the city, according to the ICAC's 2003 survey. The number of respondents who think graft is still a problem in the government and private sector has hit a three-year low.
Of 1,500 respondents polled in the Independent Commission Against Corruption's annual public perception survey last year, 30 per cent said corruption would increase next year, compared with 36 per cent in the 2002 poll.
Among those who believed corruption might rise, more than half attributed it to economic factors.
'Partly due to the weak economy in recent years, the number of corruption reports, especially those pertaining to the private sector, has remained on the high side,' an ICAC spokesman said.
Those who said corruption was still a problem in the government reached a three-year low of 17.7 per cent, while 70 per cent thought corruption was not common in the administration.
Those who said there was a graft problem in the business sector also reached a three-year low of 41 per cent. But 45 per cent said corruption was not prevalent in the sector. The survey also revealed a growing public intolerance of corruption, with 68 per cent of respondents saying they would be willing to report graft. Further, 75 per cent said they would identify themselves in doing so - the highest level in both categories since 1998.