Call for action

Corruption is certainly not a new subject in this country. People from almost every walk of life, including international businesspeople, investors and local housewives, have complained for years that few things get done here without dispensing some elbow grease, which ranges in amount according to the business at hand. In fact, so ubiquitous has corruption become that many of us are inclined to regard this social -- but mainly bureaucratic -- affliction as part and parcel of life in Indonesia.

The Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy Ltd. in April gave Indonesia the dubious honor of being the most corrupt country in Asia. Of course, many people question the yardstick that was used by the organization to arrive at this conclusion. Nevertheless, the wide prevalence of corruption and the extent to which it has affected business dealings in Indonesia cannot be denied. It is therefore hoped that the attention given to corruption by speakers at a seminar on administrative reform in Jakarta this week was prompted by a rising awareness of the urgency to tackle the problem.

Fortunately, there is proof that such an awareness exists where it matters most: in the country's highest leadership echelons. One example of the urgent need to come to grips with the problem, for example, was given at this week's seminar by the state minister of national development planning, Ginandjar Kartasasmita. According to Ginandjar, Indonesia has set its sights on becoming an industrialized country by the end of its current long-term development program in 2018. By that time, Indonesia would rank fifth or sixth as a world economic power. To that end, the bureaucracy should be able to mobilize the maximum potential of Indonesian society. Similar reminders have been given from time to time by other state officials, from President Soeharto down.

Given such a background, it is important to translate the existing awareness into action. But this is easier said than done. A common observation which Dr. Sjahrir of the prestigious University of Indonesia's Faculty of Economics cited during the seminar was the lack of transparency in policy-making. He said this is one of the main reasons corruption is plaguing our bureaucracy. A nontransparent system enables various interest groups to intervene in the policy-making process. This could generate policies which advantage the elite in the guise of serving the national interest.

In short, transparency is needed to build a clean government, which is needed to mobilize society's potential to the maximum to attain the aims of development. But serious political will is needed to push through the necessary reforms. Beyond this, any means that have so far been proposed to combat corruption, such as the formation of an independent supervisory board apart from the Supreme Audit Agency and a requirement for officials to declare their wealth, are just that: means to achieve an end.

Time is running short as the new millennium looms before us and the free trade era draws closer. We should not waste time preparing ourselves to confront the challenges that the new era brings.