If Kwik can be intimidated, what about the rest of us?

If Kwik can be intimidated, what about the rest of us?

Ong Hock Chuan, Consultant, Maverick, Jakarta

The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan)
stalwart Kwik Kian Gie has had to eat crow over his remarks that
the party is the most corrupt party in Indonesia. Many of his
critics would say that these are just desserts: Kwik must simply
realize that nobody approves of someone who keeps kicking the
ball into their own goal.

His challenged self-realization capacity notwithstanding Kwik
must nonetheless have struck a common cord among anyone who's had
to manage a high profile business or project in Indonesia when he
said that, "we are more afraid of PDI Perjuangan members than
Police Mobile Brigade officers, because of the threats of mass
demonstrations if their requests are tuned down."

Whether this is true of PDI Perjuangan members is debatable,
but what is important is the sense of helplessness in his
statement. If someone like Kwik, who is a Cabinet member and one
of the President's most trusted lieutenants can be intimidated by
people who wield "people power" as an instrument of silencing
their critics, what about the rest of us?

As someone whose job is to help organizations and companies
manage issues and crisis-like situations this author can attest
that this feeling of helplessness is endemic in Indonesia and not
only affects Indonesian individuals and companies but
multinational corporations and organizations as well.

They all share Kwik's sense of helplessness against the
bullies who claim to have "people power" behind them. Among these
people are, for example, a conglomerate boss who has a compelling
and convincing story of persecution and unfair treatment to tell.
But he would not do so because he feels that it would only court
the wrath of the "people power" bullies.

There is also the NGO that has an important mission of
educating the public about reproductive health and contraception
but is stymied by the fear that the people power bullies would
accuse them of promoting promiscuity and immoral sex and mobilize
demonstrators against them.

Their fear is understandable but unjustified. By accepting
that they are unable to go against the will of the people power
bullies they have inadvertently made themselves soft targets.

Soft and hard targets began life as military terms. A hard
target mans business. If you hit them you can be sure that they
will hit back, and often harder. Israel, for instance, falls into
this category. You've got to be really though if you want to take
them on.

In contrast, soft targets are easy prey. You can hit them over
and over again and all they do is lie down and accept more of the
same. They do not retaliate. Think of the wimpy boy in school
who constantly gets picked on by the school bullies. President
Megawati, Indonesia's erstwhile conglomerate bosses, most well-
meaning and genteel corporations and organizations fall into this
category.

What soft targets do not realize is that the world has changed
and Indonesia has changed. For all its imperfections, democracy
has been loosed on this country. The mass media may have its
faults but by and large they are free.

And by being free they have fundamentally tilted the balance
of power from the people power bullies to those who are know how
to court and win public opinion because that is where the
ultimate seat of power lies: Not with the rent-a-crowd people but
the silent majority that is dying to make themselves heard.

With the skillful engagement of the mass media an organization
or corporation can not only turn the tables on the bullies; it
can actually "enlist" the help of the media to shape public
opinion. This is no mere theoretical framework. It can be done
and has been done.

For instance, a professional services firm was last year faced
unfounded charges by a quasi-government authority that was headed
by high profile individuals who have somehow cultivated a
reputation for speaking on behalf of the people.

For weeks they were at the mercy of these individuals who had
but to make a call and the media would be at hand because of
their status in society.

Realizing that they had to do something or see their
reputation eroded to the point of no return, they decided to
fight back and took the authority to court. They were confident
of winning the case on legal grounds but when they assessed the
state of the judiciary they quickly realized that unless they won
the image battle they could lose the legal battle.

Using strategic communications to support the litigation
process, the firm managed to turn round the tone of media news
coverage about them from negative to positive. After a couple of
weeks the firm found that the media as actually putting pressure
on the quasi government authority to explain their actions
instead of questioning the firm's integrity.

With public opinion behind them, they also made it easier for
the courts to rule in their favor, which they did. The decision
has been appealed and it is still winding its way through the
judiciary system but one lesson is clear: Who dares take on the
people power bully can win.

Like most school bullies, Indonesia people power bullies are
also all bravado and bluster. Once their victim becomes a hard
target and fights back, their stature collapses and the wind gets
knocked out of them.

Now wouldn't that be a wonderful sight: Businesses, NGOs and
other organizations going about their own businesses
professionally and doing the right things instead of not doing
them for fear of the power bullies?

Maverick is a communications consultancy that specializes in
crisis and issues management as well as brand strategy.