New Egyptian envoy seeks to strengthen old links
New Egyptian envoy seeks to strengthen old links
By Meidyatama Suryodiningrat
JAKARTA (JP): On Nov. 22, 1995, Indonesia received a new "old"
friend in its midst when President Soeharto accepted the
credentials of Mahmoud Osman as the new Egyptian ambassador here.
With his posting, Osman attempts to not only just continue,
but strengthen the ties between Indonesia and a country which is
its oldest ally.
Osman's task may not seem difficult since history records the
ties established when Egypt became the first state to recognize
Indonesia's Independence which was proclaimed on Aug. 17, 1945.
However, does the passionate flame which ignited the bonds of
friendship continue to burn as brightly today?
Osman refutes suggestions that, while ties remain close and
amiable, the two have drifted apart, each engrossed in their own
diverse matters.
"We are like two twins who grew up together," professed the
57-year-old ambassador.
He maintains that since the 1950s both states have pursued
common goals for the betterment of developing nations and today
those ambitions are evident in various mutual efforts through the
Non-Aligned Movement and the Organization of Islamic Conferences.
"I think it was not just a purely ceremonial step, it was
deeper then that. It actually kept the two countries tied up with
a formidable umbilical cord that kept feeding both equally over
the years up to today," Osman told The Jakarta Post.
A connoisseur of classical music, literature and occasional
poet, Osman began his diplomatic career in 1961 after almost
entering the teaching profession.
After studying literature at Cairo University, Osman was
offered a teaching post, lecturing Greek-Roman history, only to
find out he had to wait one year to occupy the position due to
budget constraints.
"What was I going to do for a year? Just sit around like a
lame duck? So I applied to the diplomatic service," he said of
his decision to join the Egyptian foreign service.
Despite achieving a very distinguished career as a diplomat,
Osman still exhibits a great deal of affection when talking about
teaching.
"Perhaps it is somewhere in the back of my mind, that
nostalgic desire to teach. So whenever I have the opportunity, I
grab it," he said of his decision to spend a year as visiting
lecturer at Carleton University in 1981.
Osman's first posting was to Pakistan in 1962. This experience
was to be an important formative experience for the young
diplomat.
He became witness to how the Cold War created alliances and
antagonized inter-state ties.
"Perhaps Pakistan gave me a perspective of how the Cold War
was a disruptive element among nations within one region," he
said.
From this cognitive experience, Osman further developed his
skills and continued with other postings in New York and Ottawa.
He was ambassador in Nairobi from 1990 to 1992 before
returning to Cairo as director of policy planning and then
director of research and political information.
It was around this time that Osman married Leila Emara, who
herself is a career diplomat.
"She is actually also eligible to become an ambassador, but
she preferred to join me," he said of his wife.
When not busy with his official functions, Osman is a great
fan of classical music. "I prefer the three-Bs," he said
referring to composers Bach, Beethoven and Brahms.
He humbly adds that on the odd occasions, he also dabbles in
"naive attempts to write poetry."
Of his posting here, Osman said that it began to take shape
when attending a NAM meeting in February 1994, on behalf of
Egyptian foreign minister Amr Mousa.
Returning to Cairo, Osman was asked by Mousa how he liked
Jakarta and replied that he liked it very much.
"We then sort of exchanged a silent dialog, but it didn't
click into my mind what he is cooking up," Osman said recounting
his meeting with Mousa.
It was not until last April that Osman was offered the post
which was due to be vacated by outgoing ambassador Sayed Kasem
Elmasry in September.
Of his primary goals as ambassador here, Osman said he would
like to overcome the "very disquieting fact" of a US$130 million
trade deficit Egypt suffers with Indonesia.
He has already begun preparations to this effect by organizing
an Egyptian trade fair here in April.
The second goal is to transmit to Egypt how privatization has
worked out in this region and should, with some modifications, be
emulated to help boost the Egyptian economy.
"I think copying the Indonesian model might be of some
advantage to us in Egypt," he remarked.
Osman admits that Indonesia has been able to progress a little
faster in some respects and suggests that lessons could be
learnt.
"One of the twins is now achieving faster strides than the
other. Perhaps one of the reasons is that Egypt has been
engrossed so heavily over the last decade or so in sorting out
the Arab-Israeli conflict," he said.
Third, but no less important, is improving "awareness" of
Egypt amongst Indonesians.
"Indonesian knowledge of Egypt still needs to be enriched," he
said adding that Indonesia has a slight advantage with the some
3,000 students studying there while the Egyptians here are few.
Steps are being taken to introduce cultural performances here
later this year.