Letter: Wall Street occupation

Letter: Wall Street occupation

| Sat, 10/22/2011 12:17 PM

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I think the “Occupy Wall Street” movement, which is against the unhealthy influence of corporations in politics, has global resonance and applies equally well to Indonesia and the majority of countries across the globe.

Many multinational corporations (MNC) and big businesses fund political parties during elections in return for favorable and discriminatory policies to maximize profit at the expense of common public interests. The lobbying by large oil and gas companies made the Bush-led US to embark on the Iraq misadventure at huge costs to the world at large.

Currently, the Republicans are holding the US Congress at ransom, preventing the government from increasing taxes on the 1 percent super-wealthy individuals who control over 50 percent of America’s wealth — current policy effectively means a secretary has to pay more in taxes than her multi-millionaire boss. A handful of MNCs today are monopolizing agriculture and food prices at the expense of the world’s poor and landless farmers and laborers by manipulating government policies around the world.

By getting governments to reduce risk-related banking regulations, some top executives of global banks have recklessly compromised the hard-earned money of their customers in order to maximize bank profits and boost their yearly bonuses. Such appeasement of big business interests at the expense of the common people had disastrous consequences for both the US and the global economy.

It’s about time we all united to ensure transparency in electoral funding and, if possible, stop the political corruption being practiced by large corporations for advancing their selfish interests.

The aim of the movement should be to reduce the role of corporate money in electoral funding globally so that true democracy can prevail and the will of the silent 99 percent majority can be accommodated against the greed of the 1 percent elites fueled by a compliant political class.

Sumit Puri
Jakarta

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