The Mulyana case: An NGO activist reflects

The Mulyana case: An NGO activist reflects

Ignatius Haryanto Jakarta

If people perceive those working for non-governmental organizations as clean, honest people they should think again, with the arrest of General Elections Commission (KPU) member Mulyana W. Kusuma for alleged corruption being a good example of why.

Mulyana was appointed to the KPU three years ago. A criminologist and reputable human rights activist from the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), Mulyana also headed the Indonesian Committee for Free and Fair Elections (KIPP) in the mid-1990s.

The KPU had the difficult and complicated task of organizing the country's first direct election.

As the investigation into Mulyana is still ongoing, it would be inappropriate to comment on his case. Meanwhile, a fact- finding team is looking into the case and hopefully the shroud of mystery surrounding Mulyana and other KPU members will be lifted over next few weeks.

Among NGO activists there are two different standpoints in looking at Mulyana's case. One side believes that Mulyana was set up and is innocent. Others believe the case should be investigated carefully, and if it is proved that Mulyana did try to bribe a state auditor, he should be jailed like any other corrupt person.

Aren't NGO workers immune from corruption? Many NGO activists were probably clean to begin with. But people can change due to many factors, among them financial and political interests.

I can attest that being an NGO activist is not a glorious life, and many NGO activists consider the NGO sector only a stepping stone to a better life, be it in the bureaucracy or the private sector.

It is very sad that an NGO activist like Mulyana would be involved in such a case, a practice that has been long criticized by many NGO activists. If Mulyana is found guilty of attempting to bribe the auditor, it would be an embarrassment to NGOs and would indicate that "money can buy anything" including the the convictions of a seasoned activist.

This case also prompts one to wonder whether the role of the NGO is changing to suit financial and political interests in Indonesia. How can NGO people really strive to improve conditions in Indonesia?

NGO activists alone cannot do much, because they depend on other stakeholders. NGO activists can only participate in specific issues, partial problems and sometimes become involved in others' past actions.

Most NGO activists have ideals that they want to promote, and by doing so, they collaborate with other stakeholders, such as funding agencies, with a specific targeted community, with experts and with government agencies.

Sometimes funding agencies -- domestic and foreign -- have preferences in which issues to deal with, and local NGOs sometimes become only an extension of an agency's interests. That's why most NGOs often have to negotiate with funding agencies, so that two different interests can be met.

There is a joke about a "project man", where an activist looks for projects to survive. Through projects, activists can ensure the sustainability of their institutions. But at the same, this attitude can erode their ideals on how to improve conditions for the targeted community.

Mulyana's case also shows that NGO activists are not immune to corruption, and it takes a lot of determination and courage for an NGO worker to remain clean in many public institutions, just as it does a public official.

Still, we should not jump to the conclusion that all NGO workers pursue financial gain in running their organizations. Many NGO activists uphold their ideals, and to be fair, we should also note that some of them also change their ideological position when the political system changes.

Slowly but surely, there are some elements that tend to change an NGO activist's ideological position and become part of the new government, or another state institution, even to the extent that they totally reverse their ideals.

NGO activists face bigger challenges when they enter a corrupt system. They alone cannot fight a corrupt system, but they can at least show us that they live properly and according to what they struggle for.

The writer is a researcher at the Institute for Press and Development Studies (LSPP), Jakarta. He can be contacted at ignh@yahoo.com.