Crime and corruption as forms of business

By Mochtar Buchori

JAKARTA (JP): It has been said that among gangsters, killing is just "business". It is something that has to be done for survival. As such, it should be done efficiently. A true gangster never kills in anger. In most cases the gangster approaches the victim in a friendly manner, chats with the victim, he may even invite the victim for a drink, and then he strikes without warning. The job is done, and the gangster goes away quietly.

In cases like this, gangsters seem to follow Jean Rostand's adage which says that when one kills a person, one is an assassin; when one kills millions, one is a conqueror; and when one kills everybody, one is god. This may be the reason why some gangsters kill indiscriminately, and often do so without provocation. Killing seems to make some people feel that they have the power of life and death over others.

In a healthy society, corruption is practiced by a small minority of greedy people, those who are materially well off but still want more. In a corrupt society, cheating and stealing are so common as to be considered normal, even when the perpetrators are prominent personalities.

No amount of wrongdoing can taint the reputation of these prominent personalities and in this way corruption eventually becomes a normal occurrence that is an integral part of daily life. Thomas Fuller (1608-1661) once pronounced that "a thief passes as a gentleman when stealing has made him rich." His sentiment is echoed in the view that stealing and cheating are just "business" when part of institutional corruption. Outside this framework, the same acts are viewed as crime.

This does not prevent corrupt individuals from continuing their unsavory practices. People guilty of corruption believe that "successful and fortunate crime is called virtue" (Seneca, 55 B.C.- circa AD 39). In any case, in a corrupt society it is always petty criminals who are caught and reprimanded, while the "big fish" go unpunished and retain their considerable status in society. "Laws grind the poor, and rich men rule the law" (Oliver Goldsmith, 1765).

Can killing and corruption really be called business?

Business is the occupation, work, or trade in which a person is engaged. The word may be used to refer to gainful economic activity, but may also be used to denote trade, commerce, or industry which is illegal, like trade in narcotic and firearms, management of prostitutes, or money laundering.

The word business can thus be used in a purely technical sense or in a morally oriented sense. Used in a purely technical sense, being a member of a criminal organization is indeed an occupation, a job. A gangster organization can produce and distribute commodities and in this sense being a member of a criminal organization is technically a "business activity".

However, those with a sense of law, justice, and social order will seriously challenge this assertion and the legitimacy of any occupation that is closely connected with criminal organizations.

A lawyer involved in organized crime is, technically speaking, a lawyer. Morally speaking, the lawyer is, in the words of Lord Byron, a "moral chimney sweep" using a "legal broom" and as a consequence becomes dirty. This lawyer is not concerned with upholding justice, only with winning legal cases. Viewed in this way, any business activity related to crime is not a "normal" or "legitimate" business, but an illegitimate one. It is crime.

Cheating and stealing within a corrupt society is also crime, but is legitimized if perpetrated by official institutions. That is why many people consider corruption as a legitimate crime. For example, collecting taxes is a legal and legitimate act. However, charging a fee in exchange for a reduced tax bill is a criminal act, but not easily detected.

According to Professor Syed Husayn Alatas, corruption in a developing society is always collective and faceless. It is impossible in such a society to pinpoint guilty individuals.

It is important that we know that there are criminal organizations around us and that corruption is rampant in our society. We have been unable to stem these two vices, yet we all dream of a utopian society, free of crime and corruption. Is such a hope realistic?

No. There is no society without crime. According to Emil Durkheim, crime is "an inevitable, although regrettable phenomenon, due to the incorrigible wickedness of men". All that we can realistically hope for is that crime will not exceed a given level in our society.

Genuine development cannot be achieved through corruption. There are two things which must be borne in mind as we try to reduce corruption in our country. First, in every government "corruption begins nearly always with that of principles" (Montesqieu), and second, "No man is worthy of unlimited reliance -- his treason, at best, only waits for sufficient temptation" (H.L. Mencken, 1919).

We have failed to heed Montesqieu's warning. But we still have time to take Mencken's advice seriously.

The writer is an observer of social and cultural affairs.