As Beijing touts a high-profile crackdown on corruption , experts say it should look south to Hong Kong as an example of a Chinese territory that has succeeded in cutting out the rot . Four decades ago , Hong Kong was one of the most corrupt cities in the world , according to anti-corruption organization Transparency International . `` I would compare Hong Kong [ in the 1970s ] to Argentina today , '' said Ran Liao , the group 's senior program coordinator . Transparency International has only been publishing its Corruption Perceptions Index since 1995 but , had data on Hong Kong been available at the time , Liao said it would have rated at a similar levels not only to Argentina , but Gabon and Tanzania . According to its latest Corruption Perceptions Index , all three countries score a lowly 35 out of 100 , on a sliding scale from 0 ( `` highly corrupt '' ) to 100 ( `` very clean . '' ) Hong Kong , meanwhile , earns 77 out of 100 , placing it at number 14 of 176 countries ; meaning it 's perceived as slightly more corrupt than Germany ( 13 ) but less corrupt than the United Kingdom ( 17 ) and the United States ( 19 ) . How did Hong Kong clean up its act ? Change came to the former British colony following mass street protests after Peter Godber , the then police superintendent , fled the territory while being investigated for alleged corruption . The outcry led to the formation of the Independent Commission Against Corruption , a government body with wide investigative powers . But the changes were n't only aimed at officials . `` They adopted a three-pronged approach , that means punishment , education and prevention , '' Liao said . The education starts at local kindergartens , where characters created by ICAC present children with ethical dilemmas and stories where the honest one always wins . `` We do n't teach them about the laws but we teach them about the values , '' said Monica Yu , executive director of the Hong Kong Ethics Development Centre , an ICAC division . Hong Kongers 'will never tolerate corruption ' Two generations after adopting this approach against skirting the rules , Yu says there 's evidence of a major cultural shift in the attitude of the local Chinese population . `` We measure the tolerance level of the people to corruption , from a scale of zero to 10 . Zero means total intolerance and 10 means total tolerance . For the last decade or so , the average was 0.8 , 0.7 or so , '' Yu said . And this drew Yu to the following conclusion : `` Nowadays in Hong Kong , people will never tolerate corruption . '' She says the lack of tolerance for rule-breaking reinforces ethical behavior , both in private and public spheres , as violators are named and shamed by their peers . `` Very often people would come forward to ICAC to report corruption , whenever they suspected there was a case . That 's a big difference compared with before the ICAC was set up , '' Yu said . Liao agreed . `` Before the ICAC there was nobody to think about such a comprehensive way to fight against corruption , '' he said . When jail is the only remedy for corruption it shows there 's another problem : there 's no real fight against it . `` Punishment means you have committed the misconduct , '' Liao said . `` Prevention is very important , [ the ICAC ] talks to different sectors , for example , the banking and the construction sectors . '' The ICAC publishes guidelines for business and tries to identify operations with high potential risks . The institution also organizes events to talk about these issues and push the prevention agenda in the business and government sectors . In that process , employees are told how and to whom to report suspected wrongdoing . How corrupt is China ? The distaste for corruption in Hong Kong contrasts with the situation in China , which ranks just below Sri Lanka in the Corruption Perception Index -- sharing 80th place with Serbia and Trinidad and Tobago in the ranking of 176 countries . Its low placing is unlikely to change anytime soon , Liao said . `` In China now , most of the corrupt officials would compete to see whoever received more bribes . '' The traditional giving of cash-filled red envelopes during festivals and special occasions has expanded to encompass paying officials for favors , a practice denounced recently by mainland Chinese state media . Nor will China 's recent well publicized conviction of former high-flying politician Bo Xilai on corruption charges change day-to-day realities , said Liao , because stamping out corruption is not simply a legal issue . `` Even today , many of the country 's top leaders think fighting corruption means putting people in jail , '' Liao said . `` People in Hong Kong would take it as shameful to receive bribes , '' said Liao . China needs `` a society-wide change in values , '' he added .
40 years ago , corruption was rife in China , experts say . Now it 's considered one of the least corrupt territories in the world . Tobago , however , rates poorly on the index by ICAC . It 's in 80th place on `` Prevention , near Serbia and Trinidad and China .