RI diplomacy hangs high hopes on ICWA

By Aleksius Jemadu

BANDUNG (JP): Those who have been longing for a breakthrough in Indonesian diplomacy must welcome the establishment of the Indonesian Council on World Affairs (ICWA) with great enthusiasm.

The council, which was inaugurated by Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas recently, is an independent body dedicated to the promotion of international cooperation and functions as a forum of discussion.

The fact that the council comprises scholars, researchers, experts and diplomats should make it resourceful enough to spearhead a breakthrough in Indonesian diplomacy.

With the growing importance of such issues as trade liberalization, human rights, democratization, the environment and labor conditions in post-cold war global politics, Indonesian foreign policy is going to face a tremendous challenge. There is, therefore, a growing need to broaden the foundations of foreign policy making.

Such broadening would necessitate congruence between consistent efforts to respect human rights at home and Indonesian diplomacy abroad. The compatibility of our governing system and universally-accepted norms such as respect for human rights, social justice and democracy can also increase our chance to get more international support for becoming a permanent member of the UN Security Council.

While Western leaders cannot dictate to us on how to handle our human rights problem, it is beyond our capacity to prevent them from questioning our human rights record. We cannot avoid the fact that in the eyes of western leaders human rights violations have become a universal concern. Alas, such concern knows no national boundaries.

There is good reason to suggest that Indonesian diplomacy should be made more effective in communicating national interests to the international community. New strategies and tactics should be invented so that we might be able to achieve our policy goals in global competition with other nations.

However, some political analysts are concerned with the fact that up to now the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not developed a clear and comprehensive strategy to deal with structural changes in the global political economy. Such strategy can only be developed if the ministry is willing to accept policy input from other government and private institutions.

The incorporation of other sources of policy input into the process of foreign policy-making could improve the convergence between foreign and domestic policies.

Policy inconsistencies which are caused by a contradiction between what we announce abroad and what we do at home are detrimental to the credibility of our diplomacy. The ministry alone may not be able to face the challenges of Indonesian diplomacy. It has to work together with other government agencies and private institutions.

Dealing with the legal status of Indonesian workers abroad is a case in point. How can our diplomats defend the case of the workers in a foreign country if they have no accurate information regarding the identity of these people? Can the Ministry of Foreign Affairs be held responsible for the bad policies of other ministries?

There are at least two important policy agendas which need to be worked out through our global diplomacy. The first is concerned with the creation of a conducive global and regional environment in which the pursuit of our economic goals might be enhanced.

Included in this agenda is the promotion of good relations with our major trading partners. It is equally important to maintain our credibility in the eyes of countries from which a major proportion of our foreign investment originates.

Of particular importance in this regard is our sensitivity to the fact that we are being challenged by the coexistence of a territorially-based political system with an economic system that is increasingly global in scope.

In order to accomplish this agenda Indonesian diplomats need to increase their skill and professionalism in conducting trade and investment negotiations within the framework of global economic regimes such as the World Trade Organization (WTO).

It is high time now for Indonesian diplomats to improve their knowledge of global business diplomacy. They need to move beyond the traditional way of conducting negotiations by adopting new strategies from private international corporations.

The second policy agenda is how to convince the international community, especially western countries, that the present political system will lead us to more democratic governance in the future.

It should be noted that over the last two years Indonesia has become a focus of international attention due to a spate of incidents across the country related to political violence. Frequent political violence is a sign of the political system's incapacity to manage conflict.

Consistent efforts to realize political openness and good governance is a necessary step towards a democratic future. Indonesian diplomats may use concrete evidence of political reforms at home to substantiate their arguments defending government policies abroad.

The establishment of ICWA is undoubtedly a good step toward progressive diplomacy. There is no doubt about the quality and credibility of its executive members. Curiously enough, however, why has it failed to incorporate businesspeople into its executive body? Needless to say, their input would be essential for foreign policy makers in dealing with global economic challenges.

The writer is director of Parahyangan Center for International Studies at UNPAR, Bandung. He is also a lecturer of the School of International Relations at the same university.