The 'Qatargate' reveals the dark side of the European capital of lobbying

In Washington they are known by the street where most of the offices or institutes dedicated to

are located , K Street.

In Brussels they don't have a nickname, but they do have muscle: more than 12,000 registered lobbyists — a figure that, according to some studies, could be double, since not all those who lobby wear the label — mingle in the Belgian capital with officials Europeans, in an attempt to promote policies favorable to the interests they represent: a cause, such as the environment or human rights;

but also powerful companies or, as has now been seen with

, the interests of countries outside the community club.

And they do not always do so in compliance with the rules, as also demonstrated by the scandal of alleged bribery of MEPs and senior officials by Qatar and Morocco.

Since just a week ago the first arrests and records of what is already considered the biggest corruption scandal in the Eurochamber took place, the

plot has revolved around an alleged NGO, Fight Impunity.

Its founder, the former Italian MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, is the main suspect and remains in pretrial detention accused of corruption, money laundering and belonging to a criminal organization.

At first glance, the organization with an irreproachable name (who doesn't want to fight impunity?) had no less impeccable cover letters: its headquarters are on Calle de

Ducale, one of the most elegant in the center of Brussels, on the same block as the United States Embassy and the residence of the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander de Croo.

And it is two steps away from the so-called European neighborhood where the community institutions are located, in which it is suspected that he tried to influence with money from States outside the Union.

In addition, as honorary members of its board are well-known names such as the former French socialist prime minister Bernard Cazeneuve, the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Denis Mukwege, or prominent former EU figures such as the former High Representative for Foreign Policy Federica Mogherini , the also Italian Emma Bonino, or the former Greek Immigration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos.

Since the scandal broke, one after another has been quick to disassociate themselves.

"I don't know Panzeri, I haven't seen him in my life," Cazeneuve told Franceinfo radio.

“I accepted that honorary role two or three years ago, but never heard of them after.

I have asked that my name be withdrawn", added the French politician, whose wishes have not been fulfilled: names have been deleted, yes, but not his, but those of the list of workers in which another of the defendants appeared in the

, Francesco Giorgi, the partner of the also detained Eva Kaili, until this week vice president of the European Parliament, and also in preventive detention, as her partner and as Panzeri.

Among the detainees, although already released under surveillance, is also the general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation (CIS), Luca Visentini.

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How can another 'Qatargate' be avoided in the European Union?

In recent days, the Fight Impunity plaque has also disappeared from the portal where it had its headquarters along with 15 other NGOs, including No Peace Without Justice, directed until this week by another defendant in the plot, Niccolo Figa-Talamanca.

This Italian, the fourth defendant, on probation since Wednesday, appears on several of the boards of the other organizations with which they share headquarters and which this week remained tightly closed.

According to the Belgian newspaper

, which uncovered the scandal, except for its constitution act as a non-profit company in September 2019 —just after Panzeri left his post as an MEP— there is no trace of Fight Impunity in official records. Belgians.

Nor is his name found in the transparency registry created by the European Commission, where NGOs such as Oxfam or Human Rights Watch do appear.

Despite this opacity, nothing prevented Panzeri's NGO from receiving funds from the European Parliament: according to

, at least two MEPs from the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group, chaired by the Spanish Iratxe García, supported a request for funds of 175,000 euros , of which they received at least 43,750 last year.

They are the Belgian Marie Arena, separated from her duties in S & D due to her alleged involvement in the case (although she has not been charged at the moment) and the Portuguese Isabel Santos, another honorary member of Fight Impunity.

The façade worked, at least until the police coup last Friday, in which its headquarters were searched and its main leaders were arrested.

Among the activities that they organized this year, there is an "International Conference on the future of human rights" held in mid-June in the Eurochamber that was presented by Panzeri and Figa-Talamanca and that had as prominent speakers the president of Parliament European, the conservative Roberta Metsola, or the Congolese Mukwege.

In the sessions, prominent figures from the human rights movements also participated as speakers and were moderated by MEPs of various stripes.

Fight Impunity, which is believed to have been used as a front for Panzeri's alleged dealings to influence "the economic and political decisions of the European Parliament", as the Belgian Prosecutor's Office said when revealing the operation, has visibly taken advantage of a favorable environment such as it is the one in Brussels in the presence of lobbyists, who at least until now walked calmly through the corridors of the European institutions.

One of the problems denounced since long before

is their large number and their opacity.

In the last registry of transparency of the Commission opened in the networks, there are 12,411

, but it is estimated that they are at least double those that actually act, as denounced in 2016 by Transparency International, which estimated the number of lobbyists that work for these organizations in Brussels at 91,000 people, a whole small town.

Of them, more than 6,000 had a pass to enter the European institutions, like Panzeri who, as a former MEP, walked calmly through the Eurochamber until he was arrested.

As of 2016, the growth curve of

in Brussels it shot up, according to data from the European Commission.

It is also significant the origin of those who try to influence in some way -mostly through the legal channels of professional lobbying- in those responsible for the EU: only a quarter (3,483) of those registered in the transparency registry are non-governmental organizations or citizen platforms.

They are followed closely by "companies and groups" (3,026) and trade and business associations (2,619).

The small number of "entities, offices or networks established by third countries" registered, barely five, is striking.

There are increasing indications that not only Qatar, but also Morocco, were behind the plot allegedly led by Panzeri and his NGO.

There are many organizations that in recent days have called for forceful measures so that Brussels stops being a swamp —Donald Trump's favorite word to define the other world capital of

, Washington— and increases the transparency of its interactions with public interests. and private.

Among the main demands is to make registration, until now voluntary, mandatory in the Commission's transparency register, and that this be used in all institutions, including the European Parliament, which is preparing measures to avoid new scandals.

The German conservative MEP Dennis Radtke has also demanded that NGOs be subjected "to the same rules as political parties, Parliament and other institutions", with a disclosure of their funds and donations because, if not, "they will continue to be a portal for dubious organizations or even States that want to buy political decisions, as we are seeing now”, he pointed out.

The left-wing groups in the European Parliament have been the most forceful when it comes to demanding transparency from the world of the

.

But, at the same time, they ask for caution and not make them pay just for sinners.

The co-president of The Left, the French Manon Aubry, recalled this week that she herself worked in a very active NGO in the EU, Oxfam, before accessing her seat.

"Ask any real NGO and they will have no problem showing the media and interviews they have (in the European Parliament), because they are things they show publicly," she said Aubry to a question from this newspaper.

“We know that in the world of influence, anything goes to serve interests, and that sometimes foreign powers can use false NGOs, but we must not put them all in the same bag, because it is the NGOs themselves that They have pushed for greater transparency, such as Transparency International,” he recalled.

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