Corruption on rise in past 3 years

Corruption appears to be on the rise worldwide in the past three years, Varuzhan Hoktanyan of the Transparency International told a news conference in Yerevan today.

The findings are outlined in Transparency International's (TI) 2010 Global Corruption Barometer, a public opinion survey released by the Berlin-based organization on Thursday to coincide with the United Nations' International Anti-Corruption Day.

The increase was most evident in Europe, where 73 percent of people polled believed corruption had risen over the last three years. North America wasn't far behind - 67 percent of people there thought corruption was now more widespread.

Globally, the political and public sectors were seen as most corrupt, with nearly 80 percent of respondents believing political parties were affected. Public officials came in second, at 62 percent.