Since the Law on Civic Organizations was revised in 1989, a large number of special interest groups have come into being. Many of these either challenge or duplicate the more traditional, government-recognized pressure groups. The new organizations often bring attention to issues, predominantly social in nature, which they feel the government should address more vigorously.
But the proof of an interest group is in its influence on policymaking. Even though the structural organization and representativeness of many interest groups is weak, some of them have been successful by using creative forms of bribery and other questionable means to further their interests. Meanwhile, other groups take to the streets.
The new environment for civic organizations, which includes a broad range of special interest groups as well, is clearly in need of a set of governing regulations, or at least a clearer definition of acceptable activities. The Free China Review organized a seminar on interest groups in order to obtain insight into the direction of interest groups and how they can best be accommodated in society.
Chaired by Jiang Ping-lun (江炳倫 ),editor-in-chief of the Free China Review, the seminar participants were: Ting Shou-chung (丁守中), a KMT legislator and founding member of the Bridge Across the Straits Foundation; Su Yung-chin (蘇永欽), a professor in the Department of Law at National Chengchi University; Tsao Jiun Han (曹俊漢), political science professor at National Taiwan University; Raymond Chang (張瑞猛), president of the Institute for National Policy Research, the private think tank established by shipping magnate Chang Yung-fa, chairman of the Evergreen Line, and funded by his namesake foundation; and Liou Shu Huey (劉淑惠), a policy researcher at the same institute.
Ting Shou-chung- “A democratic system must be based on the concept of checks and balances. But the public knows little of how policies are made.”
Ting Shou-chung: Recently, there have been a number of public seminars and discussions on setting up guidelines for interest groups. It is a sign that our society is now more aware of the importance of defining interest groups and set ting limits to their lobbying activities. Older interest groups, such as the Chinese National Federation of Industries and the General Chamber of Commerce, have been very influential in the government’s policymaking process.
But the social and political changes of the past few years have led to the rise of a host of new interest groups aiming at promoting women’s rights, consumers’ rights, environmental protection, and other issues. Before, only well-financed, well-organized and groups professional organizations could influence government decision making. Today, less-privileged groups are able to direct public attention to their concerns if they have distinct goals, and if they can mobilize popular support. Certainly, this necessitates the formulation of new rules to regulate the interaction between interest groups and the government.
Many people are advocating a lobbying law similar to that of the United States. But a lobbying law alone won’t work. Money is acquiring a louder voice here, and the legislators themselves often represent special interests. Recent local government and parliamentary elections have revealed that only the candidates who have money and the political connections are able to win.
Upscaled activities – fishermen’s organizations are becoming more adept at lobbying for their interests. A recent case: international disputes over fishing rights.
A democratic system must be based on the concept of checks and balances. But the public knows little of how policies are made. Therefore, the system of checks and balances between the administrative and legislative branches only provides opportunities for making secret deals. A lobbying law would actually not be enough. For example, high-ranking government officials here are not required to reveal their financial status or to put their assets into blind trusts during their tenure of office. It is also very common for government officials to profit from their prestige by working for private firms immediately after retirement.
For example, a former government official is now working for the new airline, EVA Airways. And since the ban on establishing new private banks was lifted in 1989, government officials in charge of higher financial and economic institutions have secretly become advisors or directors of the new banks’ preparatory offices. Not only interest groups are advocating specific policies; their agents also appear in the government’s administrative and legislative bodies. Under such circumstances, a set of laws regulating interest groups may not be effective enough.
Su Yung-chin: Since we do not yet have a sound and complete set of lobbying laws, lobbying activities are some times covert. Such activities are often illegal, or waver on the border of legality and unlawfulness. In a democratic society, almost every decision is the result of balancing different interests, but some problems have emerged. Many lobbying activities serve special case interests, and are not geared toward opposing or supporting a bill or policy. This causes serious damage to the rule of law and the concept of fairness.
Su Yung-chin- “Many lobbying activities serve special case interests, and are not geared toward opposing or supporting a bill or policy. This causes serious damage to the rule of law and the concept of fairness.”
But we do have laws and regulations that refer to the existence of lobbying groups and their activities. For example, Article 103 of our constitution stipulates that no member of the Control Yuan may concurrently hold public office and engage in practicing any profession. Article 67 says that the Legislative Yuan may set up various committees, and that these committees may invite government officials and private individuals concerned to be present at their meetings to answer questions. Since the Legislative Yuan, unlike the legislative branches of other governments, includes representatives from various occupations, this recognizes the existence of interest groups.
Some regulations also appear in the Criminal Code, such as the penalties for graft and corruption, and the Company Law bars activities that encroach on the rights of a company’s shareholders. The regulations on the establishment of civic organizations are included in the 1989 revision of the Law on Civic Organizations and, in fact, many of these civic groups can be categorized as interest groups. In addition, major regulations on trade associations are evident in laws such as the Industrial Organizations Law, Commercial Organizations Law, and various laws on professional organizations for doctors, lawyers, and writers.
The problem with these laws is that we often aren’t able to enforce them. Moreover, they are superficial, because they only regulate the establishment and structure of these groups, not their activities.
The problems we are having with pressure groups have been brewing for quite some time. What we can do now is recognize the necessity of their existence and be aware of the problems they can cause. Our policy on the structure of trade and business organizations is based on the German and Japanese models, or the so-called Continental Law. But we do not follow its spirit. In other words, we force the establishment of trade and industrial associations, but then do not give them enough autonomy for self-rule. As it is, about half of our trading firms have not yet joined such associations. What we should do now is either follow the European model by making a distinction between chambers and free associations, or follow the American model, which allows associations to organize as they wish.
Ting: To avoid bias, representatives of occupational groups should not be elected to the Legislative Yuan. This is one way we can stop big business owners from influencing the lawmaking process. And to enable various organizations to gain equal voice, we must revise the Law on Civic Organizations and the Law on Assemblies and Parades. Street demonstrations are an underprivileged group’s last resort, but they should be regulated. A stipulation should be added also to the Public Officials Election and Recall Law ensuring representatives of underprivileged groups equal opportunity to be elected by giving them some form of financial assistance.
We are now witnessing a worrisome development in our society: the rise of a completely different type of interest group. In any foreign country, it is hard to imagine a pressure group engaged in strengthening relations with an enemy. But in Taiwan, there has been a large increase in the number of trade and industrial organizations, as well as academic foundations, that are pushing for exchanges between Taiwan and the mainland.
Although the Period of Communist Rebellion has ended, the government has reiterated that unless the Chinese Communists give up the threat of military force, hostility will continue to exist between Taiwan and the mainland. In the U.S., such activities by trade or industrial organizations would be strictly regulated and would be under congressional supervision. While many voices may contribute to the formulation of policies on mainland affairs, our bargaining stance should be integrated. Take, for example, the recent negotiations on the return of three policemen abducted by mainland fishermen. The process revealed many problems. What really happened during the negotiations between our Straits Exchange Foundation and the mainland authorities? What did we promise them? All this should have been reported to the Legislative Yuan.
Tsao Jiun Han- “Any political party, whether it is the ruling KMT or the opposition DPP, is an interest group.”
Tsao Jiun Han: Usually, when we talk of interest groups, we only include the bigger, more organized and established ones. But we have quite a few pressure groups that came into being because of a specific issue. For example, the Citizen’s Solidarity Against Urban Speculation rose out of the concern that owning a home has gone beyond the reach of most people because of climbing real estate prices. A sleep-in demonstration on busy Chunghsiao East Road drew 10,000 sympathizers. Another example is the gathering strength of groups protesting the building of another nuclear plant.
In my opinion, any political party, whether it is the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) or the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), is an interest group. In the past, mobilizing support was integral to party operation, and serving public interest was not an important consideration in the policymaking process. What the DPP has been doing is equally disappointing. In the beginning they emphasized the public’s right to be informed, but now they are departing from their original ideals. It often mobilizes the public to serve their own purposes.
Jiang: One type of political party is essentially an interest group. Examples of this type would be the socialist and Christian parties in Europe, or the parties representing caste in India. Originally they were regional or ethnic groups. They bargain with the government and other political parties in pursuing their own interests. But since the KMT and the DPP are comprised of various sectors of society, they consider themselves as mass parties, not interest groups.
In the process of mobilizing and controlling their supporters, the two parties inevitably build up connections with the leadership of various sectors of government and society, and there is an exchange of favors.
Kuan shuo (關說) [intercession, or back-door persuasion] is different from yu shui (遊說) [or lobbying]. Kuan shuo entails seeking a favor from a government official who is a friend or who shares the same social network. It is more evident in the early stages of political development, when government officials have much greater arbitrary power. Common examples of kuan shuo in the past had more to do with minor matters and did not cause too much unfairness. But the situation now is quite different. Kuan shuo, when it turns from intercession to collusion, can easily lead to a profit of up to several million dollars. I hope we can go from this kuhn shuo culture to regulated lobbying as quickly as possible.
Raymond Chang- “It's not the interest groups that lead to political and business corruption and jeopardize the public good.”
Raymond Chang: The last few years have resulted in political and economic transformations without precedent in our history. Therefore, traditional values can no longer govern people’s behavior. In the feudal and agricultural societies of the past, there were rules that defined being a father or son, a brother or friend, a ruler or official. But these old ways cannot sustain themselves in a free and open society that allows private enterprise to flourish. Now, at least seven hours a day in people’s lives no longer fit into the traditional norm. Yet there is no system to indicate to businessmen and politicians what they should or shouldn’t do.
As Dr. Jiang just pointed out, a deal achieved because of back-door persuasion can be very profitable. There seems to be something wrong with this society. The free economy and democracy have brought about unexpected political and economic injustice. We should look at the particular problems Taiwan is facing and determine how they can be solved.
Look at the political and economic infrastructure. Influence on the land administration can wield great profit because land is scarce in Taiwan. It makes a great difference to a place whether or not a road passes through it. And the land administration makes that decision.
Also, the many state-owned and KMT-owned businesses have caused problems. For instance, who should be contracted to build public works projects - the private, the KMT -run, or the state-owned companies? As Mr. Ting indicated, there has been criticism of government officials who, after leaving office, immediately take up work in private companies. For example, the former deputy director-general of the Civil Aeronautics Administration now works for Evergreen, which will soon begin an airline service.
Interest groups have not yet become a problem. It’s not the interest groups that lead to political and business corruption and jeopardize the public good. Instead it is those groups that represent specific individuals and families. Groups with broad representation have not yet matured, and as yet are incapable of exerting influence.
There are several things we can do. First, we can limit the areas where interest groups can gain influence by privatizing the state-run enterprises, liberalizing licensing procedures for businesses such as insurance, and establishing independent land administrations in the different government levels. Second, the government must above all consider the public good, not the group that is most effective in promoting its interests. Third, occupational representation in elections for the legislature must be abolished. Fourth, a system of ethics governing the relationship between business and politics must be established to fill the gap left by the now ineffective norms of the past.
Liou Shu Huey: Instead of trying in vain to deal with all interest groups by one single law, I suggest that for the short term we focus on fortifying the channels through which interest groups achieve their goals. These are political parties, the administration, and legislators. To do this we have to define a system of ethics for parliamentarians. Legislation requiring them to publicize their financial status is absolutely necessary. On the administration side, there are many laws and regulations that government employees have to abide by. But there is not one law that prohibits them from working for private companies closely related to their former duties in the government after retirement. They must also report their financial positions. The parties and party-run businesses should do the same.
Jiang: A political party can be perceived as either a kind of interest group, or as the target of interest group campaigns. The KMT is often the target, and as the views of the party’s central standing committee can influence the Legislative Yuan, interest groups of all sorts frequently go - sometimes secretly - to the KMT headquarters in Taipei to cultivate connections. Ideally, the Legislative Yuan should take over the KMT’s function as an integrator and coordinator of various interests, but that’s a long way off yet.
Su: The policymaking process here is full of loopholes, and officials some times have too much discretionary power. And because of the old tradition of back-door persuasion, people do not see the need to participate in or establish organizations that will serve their interests. Instead, they go to government officials. Interest groups should not be held responsible for the graft and corruption in the policymaking process. There are too few of them, and they are largely ineffective.
A time of political adjustment and social change “There seems to be something wrong with this society. The free economy and democracy have brought about unexpected political and economic injustice.”
Traditionally, Chinese society is vertical, not horizontal. People have no awareness of society, of shared interests and the common good. Making laws is a temporary solution. Most sociologists have low expectations of laws alone, arguing that laws only work when there are social norms. I also feel pessimistic about laws. What really counts is ethics. I cannot figure out a better solution to the problems that we are having now. But one point I’d like to make here is that the media and opinion leaders should take more responsibility in educating the public whenever secret deals between business and lawmakers or government officials are uncovered. At present, they not only fail to do so, but they also mislead the public. In many cases, they overreact. For example, instead of requesting an investigation, they hastily ask someone to take the responsibility for the wrongdoing and resign. As a result, neither the people nor the business sector learns anything from it. ■