People take over fight against corruption<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It is a miracle that Indonesia has remained intact as a Nation
\ngiven the rampant corruption that benefits only the ruling elite,
\nwhile many of their fellow Indonesians struggle to survive, or
\nworse.<\/p>\n
The government appears ignorant of the many international
\nsurveys that consistently rank the struggling country one of the
\nmost corrupt in the world.<\/p>\n
The World Economic Forum this year ranked Indonesia 60 out of
\na total of 102 countries surveyed in terms of business
\ncompetitiveness due mainly to corruption and an ineffective
\nbureaucracy.<\/p>\n
And it came as no surprise to Indonesians and the government
\nwhen Berlin-based Transparency International placed Indonesia as
\nthe sixth most corrupt country in the world with a Corruption
\nPerception Index of 1.9. The cleanest score is 10.<\/p>\n
Last year Indonesia ranked fourth among the 122 countries
\nsurveyed, measuring 1.9 on the corruption index.<\/p>\n
Critics have repeatedly raised concerns about the government's
\nhalf-hearted efforts to phase out the crime.<\/p>\n
The most recent example was when Indonesia's largest Muslim
\norganizations, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, which claim
\na total of 70 million members, signed a memorandum of
\nunderstanding (MOU) in October to fight corruption.<\/p>\n
The government has not commented, let alone offered support,
\nto the initiative, though one or two high-ranking officials have
\nvoiced solidarity, but only when they were asked their positions
\nby reporters.<\/p>\n
The MOU clearly highlights a growing frustration with the
\ngovernment's efforts to eradicate corruption.<\/p>\n
They have started their campaign across the country, promoting
\nan anticorruption drive and promising to include an
\nanticorruption element in their school's curriculums.<\/p>\n
Both NU and Muhammadiyah run thousands of learning
\ninstitutions, from elementary schools to universities.<\/p>\n
NU even went a step further, saying it was considering issuing
\na fatwa that states that a Muslim who dies as a corruptor is not
\neligible to be given a special prayer by other Muslims. This act
\nis considered as the most disgraceful sanction for Muslims.<\/p>\n
The initiative was followed by concrete steps by the
\nProsperous Justice Party and the Star Crescent Party, which
\nrequires that its candidates contesting next year's general
\nelection sign agreements not to become involved in any
\ncorruption.<\/p>\n
Corruption has worsened since the people identified it as a
\ncancer that must be cut out of the country at the beginning of
\nthe reform movement in 1997.<\/p>\n
Though the vast majority of judges stubbornly acquit the few
\nhigh-powered thieves that actually end up facing corruption
\ncharges, some courts have done their duty to find some guilty,
\nbased on the evidence presented to the court.<\/p>\n
However, those few have not seen the inside of a jail where
\nthey may finally get a chance to think about the misery they
\ncause their victims, the long-suffering people of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
It is a disgrace that Indonesia's House of Representatives is
\nled by House Speaker Akbar Tandjung, who has been convicted of
\nstealing money intended to be used to feed the country's poorest
\ncitizens. The sentence has even been upheld by the High Court.<\/p>\n
The government claims it has done its best to combat
\ncorruption. Government officials often boast of the establishment
\nof certain bodies or the enactment of new legislation as part of
\nits efforts to combat the crime.<\/p>\n
Indonesia was expected to have its first anticorruption body
\nthis December, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), which
\nhas the authority to investigate and prosecute corruption cases.
\nThe power traditionally lay in the hands of the notoriously
\ncorrupt police and Attorney General's Office.<\/p>\n
The creation of the body is the follow up of the Public
\nServants' Wealth Audit Commission (KPKPN) set up in 2001. The
\ncommission, which has no executive power, has been less than
\neffective as certain officials have refused to submit their
\nwealth reports. Just how effective the KPK will be is open to
\nconsiderable debate but already the process to select members has
\nhinted that vested interests are at work behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
The government is also preparing to give additional training
\nto prosecutors and judges in the area of corruption.<\/p>\n
The government has also signed the United Nations Convention
\nagainst Corruption. It is expected to be ratified next year.<\/p>\n
However, Indonesia already has sufficient legislation,
\ninvestigating bodies, prosecution means and an empowered
\njudiciary to combat corruption. It is missing just one important
\nthing: the political will of the government to combat corruption.<\/p>\n
President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who remained poker-faced
\namid mounting calls to replace Attorney General M.A. Rachman for
\nallegedly supplying an inaccurate wealth report, eventually
\nbecame president after the party she leads, the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), secured the most votes in
\nthe general election in 1999 based on an anticorruption campaign.<\/p>\n
A senior member of the PDI-P, State Minister of National
\nDevelopment Planning Kwik Kian Gie, has called him own party the
\nmost corrupt in Indonesia. Even the President herself has been
\nunable to shake persistent rumors of corruption relating to
\nmembers of her family.
\n However, she claimed that she could not take firm action
\nagainst corruption as she feared that she would be accused as a
\nrights abuser (against the alleged corruptors).<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that six years after the downfall of the
\nauthoritarian New Order government spearheaded by the Golkar
\nParty and former president Soeharto, corruption has spread.<\/p>\n
In November, the Attorney General's Office named 180 municipal
\ncouncillors from across the country as corruption suspects.<\/p>\n
It is not surprising that increasing numbers of people are
\nlonging for the allegedly corrupt administration of president
\nSoeharto, who has never seen the inside of a court for his
\nalleged crimes. Many say they could tolerate corruption during
\nthe New Order as it only centered on Soeharto's family and
\ncronies. Under Megawati's leadership, one of the leaders of the
\nco-called reform movement, corruption has permeated all parts of
\ndaily life. Some say it is now a part of the Indonesian culture.<\/p>\n
In this sense, the MOU signed by the NU and Muhammadiyah,
\nwhich was adopted by other religious, business and social groups,
\nmust be considered seriously by PDI-P, if it expects to retain
\npower.<\/p>\n
But, it is not fair to put the burden on the NU, Muhammadiyah
\nand other groups, while the government lacks a commitment to
\nphase out the crime.<\/p>\n
The government must not defy a warning from the late noted
\nsenior economist Sumitro Djojohadikusumo late last, who estimated
\nthat about 30 percent of the country's state budget was siphoned
\noff each year.<\/p>\n
Established in 1945, Indonesia, which is known for its rich
\nnatural resources, continues to beg foreign donors for financial
\nassistance to keep the country afloat. The donor countries and
\ninstitutions, which are fully aware that much of the money they
\nlend will be stolen, continue to provide funds with few
\nconditions attached, thus continuing the cycle of debt that the
\nyet unborn will have to pay for.<\/p>\n
Perhaps, it is only divine intervention that has ensured
\nIndonesia still exists but the government must remember:
\neverything has a limit.<\/p>",
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