New government must get tough against big-fish corruptors

Todung Mulya Lubis, Jakarta

Amid the still reverberating vow of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to eradicate corruption, we find ourselves confronting the bitter reality that Indonesia remains among the world's most corrupt countries.

Of the 146 countries that Transparency International surveyed, Indonesia ranks 137th, a position only slightly ahead of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Paraguay, Chad, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Haiti. This also shows that among the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Indonesia, along with Myanmar, is more corrupt than fellow ASEAN countries like Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam.

This 2004 Corruption Perception Index shows that in the past five years, little significant progress has been made in the eradication of corruption here. Since Indonesia was first included in the Corruption Perception Index, it has always found itself ranked low with a score of about 2. On a scale of 0 to 10, a 2 is embarrassing, to say the least.

Singapore, on the other hand, has a score of 9.3 and is ranked fifth, while Malaysia has a score of 5.0 at 39th. Thailand, meanwhile, is in 66th with a score of 3.6, Hong Kong in 16th has a score of 8.0, while South Korea is 47th with a score of 4.5.

Indeed, it is no exaggeration to conclude that the administrations of Habibie, Abdurrahman Wahid and Megawati have failed to eliminate corruption. Only a very small number of corruptors have been taken to court, while the majority of them are still at large. Ironically, many of them have not only been pardoned through a Release and Discharge scheme and upon the issuance of a letter for the termination of investigation, more commonly known by its acronym SP3. Obviously, the anticorruption efforts undertaken by these three administrations exemplify NATO -- No Action Talk Only.

Has corruption really become such a serious problem? Does the Corruption Perception Index reflect the actual corruption taking place? The answer is no.

The Corruption Perception Index is a collection of "perceptions" that many circles -- particularly businessmen, professionals and social activists -- have about the corruption plaguing the country. In other words, the index is a poll of polls.

For us in Indonesia, although we have never had an idea of the magnitude of corruption here, we are convinced that corruption is practiced systemically, that it is rampant and ubiquitous.

The Supreme Audit Agency indicates in every annual report that trillions of rupiah have been "lost" in budgetary "leaks" and, ironically, the biggest leaks can be traced to the prosecutor's offices -- the very institution responsible for eradicating corruption. Against this fact, we may wonder whether we have any hope left at all that corruption will ever be eradicated, regardless of the establishment of the extraordinarily powerful Corruption Eradication Commission.

Much corruption is found among civil servants, although it must be noted that corruption, as in bribery, is also common practice among businessmen and professionals, such as accountants and lawyers).

We have a relatively comprehensive legislation for the eradication of corruption and it carries heavy penalties. Unfortunately, the government seems rather reluctant to make efficient use of this legislation. We need shock therapy to eradicate corruption.

It may be necessary for the government to find an island, where corruptors will receive the heaviest penalty possible. This island could be called the Island of Corruptors. After the wealth they accumulated through corruption has been confiscated, they must live on this island, working in the fields and repenting their misdeeds.

Susilo's administration has made its promise to enforce the law and eradicate corruption. The great challenge facing the new administration is removing Indonesia from the list of most corrupt countries in next year's Corruption Perception Index. If this administration has its own vision and courage, it can accomplish many things.

We give them a chance to do what must be done, and challenge the new administration to take the big fish of corruption to court in its first 100 days in office, as it has promised.

Thus, we will see whether Susilo and his United Indonesia Cabinet will be consistent and true to its word -- or whether it will provide us with just another example of NATO.

The writer is a lawyer and human rights activist.