Lobbying at the last minute

Lobbying at the last minute

International economic relations minister Milan Parivodić signed the contract with the agency, confirming it was made earlier, while he “thought it was valid through January 2007”.

“It’s a pity we haven’t done this sooner. Various countries and mulitnational companies do this to achieve their goals“, Parivodić was quoted as saying.

According to available information, Barbour, Griffith & Rogers will be paid 60,000 dollars per month in order to defend Serbian interests in Washington DC.

BGR and Serbian politics

It is interesting to note that Blic already linked the agency with Serbia’s political life when it came to its cooperation with the Serb Radical Party (SRS).

The daily reported it had learned the agency represented “Pink International”, Radio-Television Pink owner’s company.

The daily reported earlier the government “did not spend a penny on lobbying”. In contrast, the Serbian president’s cabinet engaged two agencies in the past two years.

Those in the know claim lobbying firms sometimes simply racketeer small countries’ governments. Leon Smith of PR World explained that governments, especially those in the developing countries, are often faced with fait accompli.

“Agency representatives offer their expensive services. If you accept, at best several letters of support will be published in the U.S. media. But if you refuse, all doors will close for you. It’s classic racketeering”, Smith said.

A good example can be found in the region – Croatia was marginalized after it refused to accept a BGR offer, which translated into a drastic damage to its image stateside.

Slovenia learnt from this example, hiring Bob Dole’s lobbying company to represent its interests.

Who is BGR?

Barbour, Griffith & Rogers is a lobbying firm describing itself as provocative, creative and aggressive in finding solutions.

The company was established in 1991, by the current Republican Mississippi governor, Haley Barbour.

In 2001, Fortune estimated the company was America’s strongest lobbying agency. BGR have already represented Macedonian and Montenegrin governments.