Service, not just prestige, sought from diplomats

Service, not just prestige, sought from diplomats

Meidyatama Suryodiningrat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Imagine a traveler's worst nightmare: Being robbed of money,
passport and tickets. Faced with such a predicament, most
Indonesians traveling abroad only have one recourse -- to seek
assistance from the nearest Indonesian embassy.

As the Foreign Ministry marked its 60th anniversary last week,
think tanks, professionals and connoisseurs of diplomacy eagerly
debated the future direction of Indonesian foreign policy.

Curiously though, few spoke of the Foreign Ministry's task
which has an equal, if not higher, importance than heady
international diplomacy: That of protecting the safety and
interests of Indonesian citizens abroad.

Consular affairs is a thankless and unending task. Successes
are rarely acknowledged, and attention only comes when something
goes wrong.

Nevertheless, with over two million Indonesians overseas, the
government must ensure the welfare of Indonesians living abroad
and must not undervalue its responsibility towards them, in
particular the foreign ministry. The number of Indonesians
living, traveling and working abroad -- already bigger than the
population of several provinces -- will only increase due to
higher mobility and the ever-increasing numbers of those seeking
employment overseas, legally and otherwise.

Consular work completely lacks glamor when compared to
chairing a UN committee or hosting an international conference,
but for the average Indonesian in trouble -- the tourist who
loses a passport, or the ignorant maid who is being exploited by
a foreign system -- the prompt and friendly assistance of
consular officers is a godsend.

There continues to be complaints about the frosty attitudes of
our Indonesian diplomats who are too bound by red tape or too
strict in observing office hours rather than helping a countryman
in need. To be fair, under the guidance of Foreign Minister
Hassan Wirajuda, there has been a detectable change in attitudes
by Indonesian diplomats concerning this issue. But there is no
harm in reminding our embassy staff that they are civil servants
before they are diplomats.

A thorough change in the mind-sets of the ministry's staff and
the construction of a responsive, modern consular service should
remain a priority.

There is a need for more sensitivity in providing easier
public access for Indonesians abroad, and in the application of
user-oriented approaches to consular services both at the
consular section window and after office hours.

There are many examples that could be emulated, many of which
are easily adaptable to our circumstances as long as there is a
strong commitment to allocate resources.

One such initiative is a 24-hour consular hotline. Australia
is one country that initiated such a center to allow its citizens
in need to call Canberra from overseas to report their problems.

Canada is another country that has a specific Consular Affairs
Bureau that helps travelers with anything from medical
assistance, lost documents, misplaced passports and missing
persons. The Bureau has also invested heavily in information
technology to allow its officers to access a central database
from anywhere in the world in order to provide speedy service.

One can only imagine the poor quality of service provided with
consular offices that persist in using only manual systems. Such
'simple' initiatives have freed the limited manpower of consular
sections in their respective embassies to focus on more complex
cases.

There are of course limits to the capacity to assist in
differing foreign jurisdictions. However, a commitment to reform
-- systemic and attitudinal -- in consular services is reassuring
and shows Indonesians that their government cares about them,
irrespective of whether they are on sovereign soil.

It is a commitment well worth investing in since it reflects
the government's emphasis on public service. Furthermore it would
cost but a fraction of yet another international summit!