Bangladesh website crowdsources alleged bribe demands

Navigating government offices in Bangladesh often involves not only official fees but also unofficial "speed money" demands, information typically shared through informal conversations or middlemen. To bring this informal knowledge into the open, GhushSite, a website launched on August 21, functions as an anonymous public ledger for alleged bribe demands.

“

If there is, how much might be expected? That information is rarely written down. Instead, it tends to circulate through conversations with people who have already gone through the process, relatives who know someone in an office, or middlemen familiar with the system.

Within three days of its launch, the platform had published 804 reports from across Bangladesh's eight divisions. These reports detail alleged bribe demands totaling roughly Tk 13.65 crore. However, the founders emphasize that these submissions are anonymous and unverified, and the site does not investigate the claims.

“

The platform describes itself as an anonymous public ledger of alleged bribe demands in public services, allowing users to record what they say they were asked to pay without identifying themselves.

GhushSite was developed by 23-year-old Saif Kabeer and 18-year-old Shahed Sharif, who were inspired by an Indian website called bribes.fyi. They describe their project as independent and self-funded. The platform's core function is to provide a searchable database of alleged demands, aiming to make fragmented and anecdotal information about unofficial payments more comparable for citizens seeking government services.

“

The reports are submitted anonymously and are unverified, and the platform does not claim to establish whether an alleged demand actually took place.