GLOBAL LOBBYING
"UNITED STATES OF AMERICA- EUROPEAN UNION and TURKEY"

Hakan HANLI
Attorney &Counsellor at Law
International and EU Law Specialist

I. General

The modern world has started to transform into global and regional villages and it gathers under one roof by means of altering political systems. The prevalence of the democratic methods also increases the value given to the individual freedoms.

In the early 21st century when the human rights and freedoms reached the peak, the administrations and the models on the political and the economical arena strive to carry out this perspective and try to gain a structure oriented towards satisfaction.

This tendency that stems from finding out the impossibility of the operation and success of the administrations, which neglect the concept of "human", place little importance it deserves and also do not form the style of the management as to these aspects, lean to fortify during the century of the global process.

We know that competition is one of the factors dominant in the formation and the processing of the representative democracies in the US and the EU countries. And competition requires the best condition for the goods and services system.

This condition raises its strength through the masses becoming more organized societies. As from this phase, these organized groups have remarkable and important effects and the power of sanctions on the administrations. Lobbying is a comprehensive field of action composed of works enforced with various methods.

The dictionaries define the word "lobbying" as "the intent to influence any legislative action or official action of the parliament members." Count Vergennes, who was the principle French supporter of the American Revolutionist at the XVI Louis period, is told to be the first lobbyist.

Lobbying that launched professionally in the US widespread in Europe in the 1980s. It's known that the annual profit of a well-known lobby institution is around US$60 million and a professional lobbyist's wage per hour is around US$600. In short, the basic aim of the pressure groups, which is an integral part of the democratic systems, is "influencing the ruling mechanisms through their own targets."

There are two kinds of lobbying at these days - The first one is formed by the ones who try to affect the decision mechanisms in the waiting rooms and corridors as a dark power. Everything is permissible for them to reach this aim. The name of "lobbying" is also used as "monitoring" in order to be saved from the bad reputation brought by these kinds of people. The second group is formed by the ones who uphold their own interest by depending on the scientific researches and thoughts. Although the method is different the target is the same in these kinds. The aim of these studies is "the acceptance of the advocated thesis (document)."

II. Lobbying Activities in the EU

The European Parliament had launched the lobbying activities when Marc Galle, member of the Parliament and the author of "La Turquie vers l'Europe", was charged to carry out lobbying when Baron Enrique Crespo was the Parliament speaker. There have been various laws and regulations and these works are still being carried out.

The first regulation was prepared by the commission managed by the British (Workers' Party) Gyln Ford and the French Jean-Thomas Nordmann (UDF) and was submitted to the Parliament Presidency on June 1996. This regulation had included certain rules including the entries and exits to the Parliament, presents and the visits (each parliament member had some more than 3000 euros budget for the trips the Parliament did not undertake.)

"We are pleased to communicate with the officials…but this relation should not turn into a partnership or a state of belonging…" Glyn Ford had said. M. Carthy had reflected to the Belgium press that Turkey had given Ankara Chamber of Orchestra's 9 cds to the parliament members.

Although each European Parliament member had a fix budget saved for the assistants and the secretaries, the wages of some parliamentarians' assistants and secretaries were paid by other institutions. The news on Peugeot-Citroen rewarding a British Parliament member during the dispute on the diesel motors in 1995 was reflected to the press.

It's conjectured that in the early 1990s, there were more than 20,000 lobbyists in the EU and their annual income exceeds 450 million euros. During the restructuring and regulation process, the transition period to the EU during when some 1000 regulations including textile, automobile, oil products, steel, tax and other industrial and agricultural products were discussed, constituted the golden period for the lobby institutions.

The common thought among the experiences experts on the art of lobbying was; "the right person must be found at the right time in order to support the thesis (document)… the subject (theme) to be effected…neither before writing nor after the writing…" As you can estimate, it will necessitate following the incidents not day by day but hour by hour in details.

Another famous lobbyist says, "…the winner is not the best person but the person who executes the lobbying activities best…"

Lobbying in Europe has intensified along with the European Economic Community. The first lobbyists were the French agriculturists. Then the major automobile companies have started to open offices that paved the way for the opening of later unions, universities, body of the lawyers, associations and offices in the regions and cities.

Lobby offices in Brussels display activity at the EU Parliament and the Commission, hence the structure and the processing styles of these offices have to be learnt well. In addition, "it's necessary and obligatory to pursue who is interested in what" as to reach an expected result.

A qualified lobby office must work with scientists continuously or regularly in order to lean its thesis on scientific grounds.

Another golden rule of lobbying is "to obtain news earlier, prepare various scenarios and not to leave everything to the last moment." The "shortcut" logic generally recoils. The important thing is to have an honest and clear dialogue and to continue it.

Lobby offices become into an education and information gathering centers within the working system. The information obtained by these offices is being sent to the institutions they represent and perform the duty to change the coming modifications. As a supplementary and supportive element, the seminar, conference and forum sector activities, which are accepted as the lobby activities, are also being executed.

As different EU countries have different approaches to lobbying, their working systems and the methods they implement also show variation.

III. Lobbying in the US

The birthplace of lobbying, which is defined as the "special attempt to influence any legislative action or official action," is the US and the word lobby agent is first used in 1839. These activities, which are undertaken by some 120,000 lobby agents and more than 8000 companies in the Washington DC, are carried out in three different ways; information gatherers (insider and outsider lobbyists), representatives and individual lobbyists. The US is even expressed that it has become a committee more than a nation.

Lobbying is comprehended and implemented in the US and in the EU in a different way. Lobbying in the US is executed by Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 and "Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act of 1946" and "Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1976" and "Lobbying Ethnics" regulations and in 1979 those of which had brought changes. American Lobbyist League was established by professional lobby agents. The aim was to implement the legal obligations and to prevent the illegal studies through supervision.

The lobby activities in the US were revised in the former US President Bill Clinton period and the legal rules and moral values of lobbying were redefined:

· The officials of the White House cannot work for lobby companies which give service of law and consultancy for the next five years as of the end of their duties.
· The civil servants cannot become lobby agents after they quit their jobs within the time proper to their degrees,
· Ministers cannot carry out life-long lobby activities for the foreign governments,
· The representatives of trade cannot represent the multinational companies and foreign governments after they retire for a life-long period,
· Preferring the fidelity to the country more than the clients under the Constitution,
· Not to misguide and decisive the client,
· Not expect any return for what you give with materialistic value to the civil servants,
· Being confidential, believable and compromising.

Legal sanctions: "the ones who do not obey these rules would be tried."
Inconvenient techniques to be used: Bribery and threatening.

IV. Turkey's Lobby Activities in the US and the EU

As the state and the private sector institutions in the lobby activities in the US and the EU are inexperienced, Turkey is not also successful.

Although this has various reasons, such factors are important in the past successes; "Education, experience, direct communication and having vast information about the specialization."

In addition, one also cannot deny that the important factor of this issue is comprehended and inclined. Especially it's happily observed that the "method of expecting effective and active services from the undervalued persons at the foreign representations are abandoned or about to be abandoned."

Although Turkish rooted scientists and the researchers have close relations with the institutions established by the Turkish immigrants in every corner of the US and the EU, the relations with them are not beneficially established to create collective advantage.

1. Lobbying Techniques in Turkey: Close-spaced individual-based visits. Cooperating with the unions, organizations etc. that represent the sector.
· Taking use of the former amity ties.
· In respect of contacting with the people close to the bureaucrats and lawmakers.
· In respect of having mutual contacts with the political party leaders.
· Organizing open-air meetings, taking silent gaits, holding press conferences etc.

2. Immigrants in the US and Europe: We observe that the immigrants, which form Turkey's other branch in the US and EU has become organized but they cannot carry out lobby activities for in general immigrants and individually for themselves (I do not say for Turkey because the immigrants must at first carry out their own lobbies and then there can be cooperation on the common issues.)

The decisions regarding the immigration are not taken in related countries but in Washington and Brussels. Turkish diaspora organizations have recently started to understand the importance of this fact.

With no doubt Turkey's "precautious attitude" to the immigrants and its wish to "guiding like control" may have some negative effects. Turkey originated immigrants are "faithful to their country and they love it." It would be useful to trust in them and support the Diaspora activities.

V. Conclusion

We cannot say that Turkey executes lobbying in the international level as it executes in the national level. Nevertheless, Turkey, stationed at a point having a geopolitical importance in terms of its strategy, must continuously and regularly carry out lobbying in the international relations through the national interest (by leaving friend-enemy polar and tending to the mutual benefits).

In addition, as long as lobbying is applied in the framework of logic (here the jurists have lot to do), it provides the expected result. As a result of the activities that are realized in a coordinated and supported way, the decisions that the mechanisms would reach in line with the targeted interests would make the country valuable and it would gain prestige within and abroad.