Breaking with diplomatic convention

Uly Siregar, Contributor, Jakarta

Cutting through the traffic on his 20-year-old Vespa, broad smile out front, suit jacket and tie trailing behind, Kirk Coningham cuts an unconventional figure for a senior diplomat.

The "CD" plate on the Vespa is the only giveaway.

Dispensing with convention became a signature of his approach to diplomacy during his four-year posting as public affairs counselor at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta from 2000 to 2004.

A passionate advocate of diplomacy, the 42-year-old father of two spurned the traditional niceties of diplomatic society, seeking instead to connect with Indonesia at a more fundamental level.

Through public diplomacy he sought to engage with ordinary people rather than the elite of traditional diplomacy.

The unconventional plan of engagement of the former military officer-turned-diplomat delivered rapid results.

"I arrived in the wake of the East Timor crisis to be told that, given the hostile climate, there was little I would be able to accomplish. But I soon found talking with journalists, taxi drivers and people on the street gave me a clear understanding of the genuine feelings of Indonesians on the issue," he said.

"I found them to be angry about the Australian policy, but equally anxious to play the role of welcoming host. The warmth I was shown quickly dispelled the caricature I had formed of the implacable Javanese. The open friendliness of the people I was meeting encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone and explore."

The policy of open engagement, which included a strategy of saying "yes" brought a series of rapid challenges. Coningham's first test of his rudimentary language skills was to co-host the opening of the Sydney Olympics on Indonesian TV.

"It's tough to do three hours of commentary on the opening of the Olympics when you don't even know the Indonesian for 'Olympic torch'."

Other challenges followed quickly, including being asked to perform poetry readings and singing and playing Waltzing Matilda on Indonesian TV as a last-minute replacement.

During the people-smuggling crisis Coningham also successfully used the Indonesian media in a deliberate campaign to raise awareness of the evils concerned.

The campaign included traveling to remote fishing villages to warn fishermen of the dangers of becoming involved in people- smuggling. Again, the campaign was based on understanding, not accusation.

Using the slogan "Don't become a victim" the program sought to educate, not admonish.

After the Bali bombings Coningham became the Australian government's spokesperson and also a staunch supporter and advocate of the work of the Indonesian authorities in the international media.

When stories of the harassment of Indonesian Muslims in Australia emerged in the wake of the Bali bombings, Coningham's simple solution was to take the Indonesian media to Australia "so they could see for themselves how ridiculous the stories were."

The result included a broadcast in Indonesia of Idul Fitri celebrations in Australia beamed back on the same day via satellite. The model was quickly adopted in subsequent years by other Western embassies.

Coningham has drawn on his understanding and experiences of Indonesia to put together a top-selling collection of short stories based loosely around his experiences in Jakarta.

Many of the stories in this collection were first published in The Jakarta Post's Sunday edition, including his first-ever published story, The Ojek Driver.

"In some ways the stories are a reflection of my approach to my work as a diplomat in Indonesia: keep it honest and open, strip away the fancy language -- normally designed to conceal, not reveal -- and get immediately to the heart of the issue, whether it be the human emotion that drives my short stories or the honesty that is fundamental to quality relationships between nations," he said.

"The language I use in these stories is deliberately simple. Just as cocktail parties don't necessarily make for good diplomacy, complicated language doesn't necessarily make for good story-telling.

"The biggest compliment comes when people say how easy the stories are to read. A radio announcer compared the book to the wonderful Chicken Soup for the Soul ... but perhaps this is more like instant noodles," Coningham said.

The collection, titled The Expat and Other Stories, is available in the city's best bookstores. The book comes ahead of the release of Coningham's first novella -- a ghost story also set in Jakarta -- which is due to be published later this year.