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.