RI response to global campaign for good corporate governance<\/p>\n
Budiono Kusumohamidjojo, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The United Nations launched the operational phase of the
\nGlobal Compact on July 26, 2000. The UN Secretary-General Kofi
\nAnnan proposed the Global Compact at The World Economic Forum in
\nJanuary 1999. The Global Compact challenged business leaders to
\njoin an international initiative with the UN agencies, labor and
\ncivil society to work on nine principles (which have since grown
\nto 10) to work toward better conditions in the fields of human
\nrights, labor and environment.<\/p>\n
The concept aims at managing global growth in a responsible
\nmanner for the interest of a broad spectrum of stakeholders that,
\nin the end, would involve all peoples of the world. In essence,
\nthe ten principles focus on business practices that should lead
\nto better respect for human rights, make labor circumstances more
\nhumane and deal with the environment more responsibly.<\/p>\n
The Global Compact is a mechanism that works through the
\nGlobal Compact Office at the UN in cooperation with the United
\nNations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR), the United
\nNations Environment Program (UNEP), the International Labor
\nOrganization (ILO) and the United Nations Development Program
\n(UNDP).<\/p>\n
Besides relying on the UN, the Global Compact seeks to involve
\ngovernments, companies, labor and civil society organizations to
\nwork toward the objective whereby \"business can be part of the
\nsolution to the challenges of globalization\".<\/p>\n
Although the concept is an effort to amplify the reasoning
\nthat doing business responsibly is the right thing in a business
\nperspective, it apparently attempts to \"drag\" the business
\ncommunity into endeavors to solve daunting problems emanating
\nfrom the inevitable process of globalization.<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that globalization has its benefits. The
\nproblem is, only a few fortunate ones are enjoying the fruits,
\nmostly those working in the business field. This fact has
\ncontributed to the continuously widening gap between the powerful
\nand the haves of the world on the one hand and the desperate
\nmasses on the other hand.<\/p>\n
No wonder responsible Indonesian leaders are scrambling to
\nfind the best ways and means to cope with the effect of
\nglobalization. Therefore, the Global Compact should be conceived
\nin this respect as an attempt to revitalize social ethics in the
\nbusiness realm and to remind the business community that they
\nhave a set of ethical responsibilities vis-a-vis people and the
\nenvironment in a global perspective.<\/p>\n
Albeit rather slow, leaders of the most affluent countries
\nhave come to recognize that their societies cannot exist
\npeacefully side by side with countries suffering under poverty.<\/p>\n
This was underlined when an African leader put it in a
\nstraightforward manner while responding to the G-8 summit at
\nGleneagles in Scotland recently: you cannot build a firewall to
\nisolate Africa and its problems from the rest of the world. The
\nglobal trend of urbanization has proven that perennial suffering
\nin many parts of the world would somehow eventually spill over to
\nterritories that are more prosperous.<\/p>\n
Although it is an accepted truism that poverty is as old as
\nhuman history, the same holds for aspirations and ventures toward
\novercoming human sufferings. Mankind has always been striving
\ntoward better achievements in medicine and food production in
\norder to quell human sufferings and poverty.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, these endeavors are not always in line with the
\ndrive for economic power and wealth that have always been
\ninstrumental in achieving political power and regional or even
\nglobal dominance. Nonetheless, businesspeople have rarely been
\ninvolved in institutionalized efforts to overcome crises where
\npolitical actors have failed. This situation seems to have
\ncommenced a change, however, and this change should not sideline
\nIndonesia as an exception.<\/p>\n
Although the UN is infamous for producing numerous resolutions
\nvia the General Assembly that mostly have failed to sell in a
\nworld that becomes more and more troubled, the Global Compact
\nmight fit into a new strategic setting in world history. To date
\nabout 1,000 world-class companies along with numerous labor and
\ncivil society organizations have joined the Global Compact
\nnetwork, and the rate of participation tends to be increasing.<\/p>\n
Being a network, it relies on the inescapable demand for
\npublic accountability, transparency and the enlightened self-
\ninterests of companies, as well as of labor and civil societies.
\nSooner or later, Indonesia's business community will be compelled
\nto abide by this pattern of doing business as well.<\/p>\n
It is indeed high time that we now also get businesspeople
\ninvolved in institutionalized endeavors toward coping with poor
\nconditions in respect of human rights, labor and depletion of the
\nenvironment. This is particularly relevant for Indonesia as we do
\nnot avail over a good record in all these three sectors of
\ngovernance.<\/p>\n
There is no doubt that Indonesia's business community cannot
\nescape its obligation to take part in this movement, particularly
\nas business practices in Indonesia still fall short of
\nreasonable, let alone, best practices.<\/p>\n
It is true that resonance of the Global Compact in Indonesia
\nis still in its embryonic level. Though, large companies have
\nindeed started to give more attention to the need for improving
\nstandards on human rights, labor and environment. Not all do so
\nnecessarily in respect of the Global Compact, however. While
\ncompanies with international networks have started to implement
\nbusiness standards commensurate with requirements of the Global
\nCompact, others do so mostly because they simply cannot escape
\nstakeholders' demands.<\/p>\n
As businesspeople know best how to work efficiently and
\neffectively towards accumulating wealth, we cannot expect that
\nthey also know the best way to increase prosperity and distribute
\nwealth more evenly. It is indeed a field where political leaders
\nand army generals have apparently failed to perform.<\/p>\n
As involvement of business actors in the Global Compact is
\nincreasing, perhaps the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and
\nIndustry (Kadin) can take the lead in the initiative for the
\nIndonesian business community to share its part in this global
\nmission. If Kadin does not take the lead to make \"business part
\nof the solution to the poverty that Indonesia has to cope with\",
\nwho else can?<\/p>",
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