Indonesian female diplomats and gender mainstreaming in diplomacy

Retno L.P. Marsudi, Jakarta

Some people say that in Indonesia diplomacy is a man's world. Many tend to believe the myth as they observe the relatively insignificant number of women diplomats, even when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will celebrate its the 60th anniversary on Aug. 19. Is the myth true? And if it is not then how can women diplomats contribute to the future of Indonesian diplomacy?

To test whether the myth is true, we must first closely examine the nature of the work involved in diplomacy. Often a high degree of mobility and constant responsiveness to ever changing environments are required. Such circumstances could easily compel women in our society to exert extra efforts if they decide to pursue this career.

It would indeed seem rather tempting to conclude that on the surface, diplomacy is ideally suited for men.

However other critical components required for successfully conducting diplomacy, such as firmness, loyalty, empathy, prudence as well as meticulousness, are qualities generally possessed by women.

Diplomacy itself has no requirements that could not be fulfilled by women. Any barriers to getting the job done originate mostly from sources beyond the control of women themselves.

In short, if we want to see gender mainstreaming in Indonesian diplomacy, then we must first change the psychological and cultural mind-set of society.

On its 60th anniversary Indonesia has 1,493 diplomats, of which almost a quarter, or 462, are women. This is not a bad representation at all. However, the percentage of women diplomats in decision-making positions remains far below that figure. Out of the 56 directorship positions in the Ministry only eight are filled by women -- a representation of 14 percent.

The seven directors-generals at the ministry are all men. For the top positions in overseas assignments, out of the 119 ambassadors or heads of mission, there are only nine women in the position -- a representation of only 7.5 percent.

However, it is good to observe that the percentage of new women diplomats has significantly increased in the last couple of years. Last year, out of the 98 new diplomats, 47 were women, or 47 percent.

This figure is almost the same in the year 2005. Out of the 97 new diplomats, 48 are women or 50 percent. It is also worth noting that in 2004, seven out of the top 10 graduates of the basic diplomatic training course were women. These figures clearly show the improving quality of women diplomats.

Does this figure reflect gender equity in Indonesian diplomacy? The success of gender mainstreaming in Indonesian diplomacy depends on at least three factors.

The first is society's acceptance of the psychological and cultural aspects of the role of women in the family. Society should accept that in addition to their main responsibility toward the family, women can also become economically productive wage earners as well.

This premise does not at all encourage women to abandon their primary responsibility along with their spouses to care for the family. The family remains the most important community unit that deserves primary attention from couples, as the future of the nation will depend on how well families are taken care of. So the core of the premise is that cultural and psychological acceptance by society of burden sharing and responsibility for the family should be encouraged.

Second, gender-sensitive, or at least gender-neutral, policies should be introduced at all levels. It would be very difficult to improve the role of women in society if the regulations remain gender-bias. Since regulations fall under the domain of the government, the main responsibility for gender mainstreaming efforts should rest with the government.

It is worth noting that the government, through Presidential Instruction No. 9/2000, has shown a high commitment in gender mainstreaming. Such an initiative should be implemented at all levels.

Third, having good quality women diplomats will significantly ease gender mainstreaming efforts. The discourse on the quota of women participating in the decision making process was a good framework for gender mainstreaming in the policy making process. However, the process to fulfill the quota should not be carried out at the expense of quality.

Quality and fair competition should remain at the core of all mainstreaming efforts. Against this backdrop, the increasing percentage and quality of new women diplomats shows a promising trend in the role of women in diplomacy.

In short, only through good collaboration between society, government and women themselves, can gender mainstreaming endeavors in Indonesian diplomacy be successful.

The article reflects the personal views of the writer, who is currently the Director for Western Europe at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.