Diplomats' quality could improve: Senior official

JAKARTA (JP): In response to an avalanche of criticism of Indonesia's foreign service, a senior foreign ministry official has defended the quality of Indonesian diplomats while conceding that the ministry's effectiveness has at times suffered because of inadequate coordination, consultation and communication.

The foreign ministry's Secretary General, Abdul Irsan, expressed confidence in the abilities of the country's young diplomatic corps.

"I feel optimistic about the performance of our younger generation of diplomats. They're very able, have a broad perception and confidence," he said.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said last week that Indonesian diplomats needed to be more assertive and proactive in carrying out their duties as the executors of the country's foreign policy.

Alatas underlined the need for Indonesian diplomats to discard the custom of keeping silent and to quickly respond to and refute unfavorable reports about Indonesia.

Some analysts and former diplomats have said the current generation of diplomats lacks quality.

While acknowledging the various flaws, Irsan contended that the diplomats' quality was continuously improving. He reserved particular praise for the performance of diplomats who have been sent abroad to undertake post-graduate studies.

"Based on experience of our young diplomats I don't think I feel disappointed. Especially those who have completed their post-graduate study abroad -- they have now shown a more than a weak performance," Irsan remarked.

The foreign ministry, as part of its human resources development program, provides scholarships abroad for young diplomats to further specialize and broaden their knowledge.

According to Irsan, there are now nearly 200 diplomats with post-graduate and doctoral degrees out of the some 1,000 working in and for the foreign ministry.

He argued that what is important is not just the academic qualifications degree itself, but the ability to apply the knowledge gained and maintain a sense of belonging towards the foreign ministry, in spite of its imperfections.

At the same time, he urged the more senior diplomats to give every opportunity to the younger ones to build their confidence and "accept the differences that realistically exist between us."

Speaking of the ministry's shortcomings, Irsan said that he perceived a lack of coordination and consultation as frequent problem.

"Our weakness at the moment is at times a lack of coordination, consultation and communication," said the Secretary General, who assumed his post just a few months ago.

In the face of the changing international situation and the challenges confronting Indonesian foreign policy, careful scrutiny of the foreign ministry's structure is also needed, he said.

"Human rights is an important issue which is being faced by Indonesia, but in the (ministry's) structure it is only handled by section heads," Irsan said.

"We slowly need to perfect our structure. This (human rights) is a world issue," he added.

Meanwhile, earlier yesterday at the foreign ministry building, 39 first class service medals, Bintang Jasa Utama, were presented to former diplomats for their contributions as Indonesian envoys abroad.

The medals were awarded by Alatas on behalf of President Soeharto. Thirty former diplomats or their kin attended the ceremony while one was unable to attend and the whereabouts of the other eight was unknown.

Included in the list of recipients are former ambassador to Canberra, Sabam Siagian, and former ambassador to Ottawa, Adiwoso Abubakar.(mds)