A must read to understand ever-changing RI landscape

A must read to understand ever-changing RI landscape

Barry Desker, Singapore

I worked in Jakarta from 1976 to 1980 in the Singapore Embassy
and returned as the Ambassador from 1986 to 1993. Between these
two sojourns in Jakarta, the establishment of The Jakarta Post in
1982 made a major difference to the diplomatic community in
Jakarta.

During my earlier stint in Jakarta, those who spoke and read
the Indonesian language had a tremendous advantage over the rest
of our diplomatic and expatriate colleagues. By reading
Indonesian-language newspapers, we had insights not generally
available. Together with other Indonesian-speaking diplomats such
as Paul Gardner of the American Embassy and Peter Rodgers of the
Australian Embassy, I found that merely by retelling a story from
the local newspapers, we would have a ready audience for
information on current domestic events or Indonesian views on
contemporary international affairs.

However, when I returned to Jakarta in 1986, this advantage
had been considerably diminished. The advent of The Jakarta Post
provided the first quality English-language newspaper coverage in
Indonesia. It contained a focused discussion of key domestic
developments, knowledgeable analyses of economic and financial
issues as well as a crisp summary of international issues from an
Indonesian perspective.

Under the stewardship of Sabam Siagian, the editorial pages
provided trenchant commentaries on issues which attracted
attention in Indonesia. There were also op-ed articles by
articulate Indonesians such as Jusuf Wanandi, Juwono Sudarsono
and Mohamad Sadli which gave insight into Indonesian perspectives
on critical domestic, regional and international issues.

The translation of extracts of key editorials in the
Indonesian-language newspapers also meant that members of the
foreign community in Indonesia had a better understanding of
public opinion in Jakarta.

Although I left Indonesia in December 1993, I have remained a
reader of the Post. I have seen the newspaper grow as it overcame
the crisis caused by the decline in readership and advertising
revenue immediately following the economic crisis of 1997-98.

In the post-reformasi era, The Jakarta Post has been able to
expand beyond the 12-page limit imposed by the Ministry of
Information during the first 16 years of its existence. By
initiating a Sunday edition, it also provided a window to
Indonesia for the expatriate community even on weekends.

The ability to put across Indonesian views, present
challenging perspectives and redistribute to an Indonesian
audience significant commentaries from the region have made The
Jakarta Post a "must read" newspaper for those of us interested
in the ever-changing Indonesian landscape.

I wish The Jakarta Post success in its future endeavours.

(The author, a career diplomat, currently chairs the Singapore
International Foundation)