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The boon and bane of lobbying
In the aftermath of President Joko âJokowiâ Widodoâs recent visit to the United States, a storm erupted about the role of lobbying in Indonesia
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n the aftermath of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo's recent visit to the United States, a storm erupted about the role of lobbying in Indonesia.
Whilst this heightened interest in lobbying might be new for Indonesia, the practice of advocating on behalf of someone for a fee is widespread and has been ongoing for decades elsewhere.
There are different forms of lobbying. It is either done directly by companies or by interest groups, or it is done by professional firms on behalf of their clients.
Advocating takes place for goods, services and trade promotion, both domestically and internationally. Companies are lobbying ' often secretly ' to have legislation amended or written in their favor, as witnessed by the tobacco and automobile industries.
Political lobbying is well advanced in the US where it is conducted by interest groups and commercial companies, advocating for anything from genetically modified grains to healthcare and guns.
Power holders such as legislators, governors and mayors are the usual target of lobbyists, so lobbying is found in the corridors of power at all levels, from the federal level down to the state and county, in legislatures and executive offices.
And it is a big business. Professor James Thurber of the American University estimated that around US$9 billion are spent annually on lobbying-related activities in Washington, DC alone.
On the other side of the Atlantic, according to recent analysis by Transparency International, of the 4,318 meetings between lobbyists and European Union commissionaires and high ranking commission staff, there is a strong correlation between the size of the budget of the lobbying organization and the number of meetings.
The 15 organizations with the most meetings each invested more than ¤1 million on advocacy around their interests.
Exxon Mobil, Shell, Microsoft and Google all have budgets of between ¤3.5-5 million for
lobbying. Of the almost 8,000 registered lobbying organizations in Brussels, the ten organizations with the most meetings include the Worldwide Fund for Nature, Greenpeace, Climate Action Network and Oxfam.
Lobbying is not confined to domestic interests. It is well-documented that when the French president or the German chancellor travels overseas, they are accompanied by large delegations of business leaders, trade representatives, and lobbyists. Numerous official and unofficial meetings take place alongside the government to government talks.
During his 2015 visit to Jakarta, British Prime Minister David Cameron was accompanied by 30 British business leaders in his entourage including Airbus and Rolls-Royce.
A successful visit usually results in a statement focusing not just on improved bilateral relations but also the trade deals, business contracts and investment agreements that have been signed.
Compared to the US or Europe, lobbying through brokers in Indonesia is still in its infancy. Even during past administrations, government visits overseas were driven by the need to invite foreign investment in Indonesia and promoting the potential of the Indonesian market, rather than to sell local commodities or Indonesian products overseas.
Domestic businesses wishing to expand to overseas markets or to increase their exports were left largely to their own devices to explore such opportunities.
Now, as Indonesian companies look to expand their horizons and find fresh markets for their products, the current administration is bolstering its relationship with business to support them.
This requires new avenues for lobbying to be explored, but to what extent the government and its ministries will utilize the services of lobbying firms remains to be seen.
Recent statements by the Coordinating Minister for Political, Security and Legal Affairs Luhut Panjaitan and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives indicate interest in lobbying is growing steadily.
Lobbying can bring both high gains as well as risks. In the past, lobbying by environment organizations, social welfare groups and civic organizations has helped to inform legislators about the potential consequences of policy decisions and are an essential source of data and ideas that can contribute to improved legislation ' taking into account the limited resources available to legislators.
However, the risks are also high as it could result in possible 'capture' of the public interest resulting from non-transparent lobbying practices, by private business interests.
Whilst public interest groups can exert a strong influence, when driven by business interests, there is the potential for corruption and collusion between business and legislators, to the benefit of both parties.
This trend has become exacerbated recently by the increasing prominence of former politicians as they enter the lobbying circuit.
To counter the dangers posed by lobbying, strict enforcement of transparency regulations is necessary. Registers of all lobbying organizations and their representatives allowed to enter parliament or ministries and to meet with legislators, committees and party groups or officials must be compiled and made accessible to the public.
The names of lobbyists and information on the number and nature of the meetings they hold should be publicized. Indonesia already has the Public Disclosure Information Act that came into effect in 2010.
This must now be strictly enforced, allowing the media and watchdog organizations, and ultimately the public, to benefit from it. Access to information is the key to oversee lobbying and to prevent abuse. As a recent case from Germany shows, clients of lobbyists as well as targets of lobbying often share an interest in confidentiality.
The German parliament has issued 2,334 entry passes to lobbyists, but only published a list of organizations that have a right to obtain a building pass, without stating which of those organizations were issued any passes.
Political party groups can also apply for passes, and around 1,000 individual passes were issued.
When a watchdog requested from the German parliament the list of the lobbyists, the information was at first withheld. A court decision then required the parliament to release the data, but the parties of the governing coalition still refused to comply.
While this case continues to be debated in the courts, three political parties have since voluntarily decided to release the names of their endorsed lobbyists. It is expected that the remaining parties will follow soon.
In the coming months Indonesian officials should address the issue of lobbying through the enforcement of transparency measures, with state institutions abiding to their obligated disclosure of information.
A specific law on lobbying is unnecessary and would be extremely difficult to enforce. In a nutshell, lobbying cannot and should not be prevented, but making available the names of lobbyists is a must; it should not be optional.
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The writer is a specialist on governance and parliamentary reform.
