New government must get tough against big-fish corruptors

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.