RI Embassy responds

We have taken due note of Ahson Saeed Hasan's article titled President's mission to U.S. needs proactive follow up, published in The Jakarta Post on June 21. While appreciating his interest, we are troubled with his less than perceptive, if not even uninformed, observations, and thus feel compelled to set the record straight.

First, while in less than one month it would be too early to judge the effectiveness of the follow-up to the President's visit, Saeed Hasan conveniently forgot to see the active role played, and preparatory work done, by the embassy leading toward that successful visit.

Second, with regard to assistance for tsunami victims, we sincerely appreciate the spontaneity of the American people and the hard work by their bureaucracy, relief agencies and the media to mobilize the funds. But failing to note the role of the embassies of the affected countries, including the Indonesian Embassy, in facilitating that work constitutes the most grotesque omission any observer could possibly make.

It would have sufficed for Saeed Hasan to check U.S. agencies, some humanitarian NGOs or major business associations to see how closely and intensively they cooperated with the embassy, including in the successful holding of the Private Sector Summit on May 12 (if he is aware at all of this important event).

Third, even more puzzling is Saeed Hasan's observation on the lack of exposure of the Indonesian ambassador or the Indonesian Embassy's staff at meetings, seminars and conferences organized by think thanks. We keep wondering why in the frequent appearances by the ambassador as a speaker and the participation of the embassy's staff at such meetings, seminars and conferences, as well as cultural events and commercial exhibitions, none of us has ever met Saeed Hasan.

Even if he himself never showed up at such events to meet with us, he should have felt free to check such institutions as USINDO, the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the World Affairs Council, The Asia Society, CSIS, SAIS, The Executive Council on Diplomacy, the Smithsonian Institution, the Corcoran Gallery, The Meridien Center, etc., before making his unsubstantiated observations.

The Indonesian Embassy has never been complacent with what it has done. More effort and improvements are indeed still needed. It is in this light that we appreciate Saeed Hasan "advice". We would be more than glad, therefore, to have direct contact and an exchange of information with him in the hope that his future articles would be more enlightened.

RIAZ J.P. SAEHU, Second Secretary Press and Information Division Indonesian Embassy, Washington DC