Widyono, an ex-Cambodian governor from Indonesia

Widyono, an ex-Cambodian governor from Indonesia

By Ivy Susanti

JAKARTA (JP): Benny Widyono may not be a household name here,
but in diplomatic circles he has his own place, particularly in
the United Nations.

A man who speaks many languages, he is the only Indonesian to
have once been a governor of war-torn Siem Reap, a Cambodian
province that has witnessed a great deal of violence.

In the following question and answer, Benny, 61, shared with
The Jakarta Post his thoughts on the ongoing crisis in Cambodia
and how he mastered 10 languages.

Question: How did you learn so many languages?

Answer: I learned Dutch during the Dutch colonial era, and
English in university. The United Nations posted me in Thailand
for about 14 years, so that's where I learned Thai.

Then I was posted in Santiago, Chile, for a couple of years
where I picked up Spanish. Finally, I spent five years in
Cambodia, where I began to understand their language. If we know
Spanish, Dutch, English, learning French is no longer difficult.
As for German, it is similar to Dutch.

I am very fond of learning languages, so I managed to search
for the root of every kind of word. For example, in the Cambodian
language, the Khmer, there is a 40 percent similarity with Thai.
It even has some words which are the same as ours, for instance,
the word kampung in Khmer is kampong, which means port.

If we can speak four to five languages, it is easier to learn
other languages.

Born in Oct. 1936 in Magelang, Central Java, Benny obtained his
bachelor of economics from the University of Indonesia in 1959. He
continued his studies at the University of Kansas, and earned his
master's in 1961.

He was a teacher's assistant at the University of Texas in
Austin while a postgraduate at the same university. Two years
later, he earned a doctorate in economics and went on to apply
for a position at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

As an economist, he was posted with economic missions. Later
he was he placed in charge of political affairs in Cambodia. "And
I found out that I liked dealing with politics, as well," he
said.

Benny began his service at the UN at the age of 27 with a
posting as a representative of the Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and the Pacific.

In 1966, Widjojo Nitisastro (who at the time led a team of
economic advisors for the President at the National Development
Planning Board) called upon me for an assistance. So every three
months I returned to Indonesia to consult with the head of the
board. I helped draw up the first State Policy Guidelines on
foreign affairs.

(From Bangkok, Benny was posted to Chile in a position which
dealt with multinational corporations. He was later posted to New
York.)

Q: What is your experience with multinational corporations?

A: As communism fails, all countries are embracing multinational
corporations, even Cambodia, Vietnam and China. They may be
communist states, but they welcome multinational corporations
such as Coca Cola or IBM. Everything is changing now...
including (Cambodian Second Prime Minister) Hun Sen.

People have said he is a communist, but he is also all for
multinational corporations. His friends are businesspeople. It
means that communists nowadays are aware that private
corporations play a role in developing their countries.

Q: You were once a governor of Siem Reap...

A: I dealt with the issue of multinational corporation from 1975
to 1981. In 1981, I shifted to diplomacy in New York, known as
multilateral diplomacy. That way, I associated with people from
many nations, until 1992.

In 1992, I was posted to Cambodia. I was assigned as the
governor of Siem Reap. How do you think a foreigner could become
a governor?

At the time, Hun Sen reigned over Cambodia, supported by
Vietnam, a communist state. But it was King Sihanouk that was
recognized by the United Nations. The king did not have any
territory in Cambodia, but he had a seat at the UN. As neither
party recognized the other, the UN mediated. And I was appointed
as governor of Siem Reap.

Q: Weren't you afraid of the situation then?

A: Yes. My wife and I heard shooting every night. Later on,
however, we could not go to sleep unless there was the sound of
shooting. That was in 1992.

In 1993, UNTAC (the United Nations Transitional Authority in
Cambodia) held an election in Cambodia. The coalition government
of (Second Prime Minister) Hun Sen and (first prime minister)
Prince Ranariddh was formed. I returned to New York in the same
year, but was later appointed as UN ambassador to Cambodia.

The interesting part was not when I was ambassador, but when I
was the Siem Reap governor. Cambodia was at war at the time. I
had to make decisions that often meant the lives and deaths of
other people.

Q: Cambodia must have left a very deep impression on you...

A: The most important is that I feel that I contributed to the
rebirth of Cambodia, and that's why I'm a little sad that the
situation is now deteriorating again.

I think ASEAN can play a very big role in the situation,
especially foreign minister Ali Alatas. Hun Sen admires President
Soeharto, admires Alatas and Indonesia. He respects the
impartiality of Alatas.

Hun Sen says that ASEAN is not all the same. Of course, his
biggest supporters are Vietnam and Laos because they're communist
countries, but he respects Indonesia's neutrality and he really
admires Soeharto. He said Golkar and the political stability had
brought progress to Indonesia, which he himself has witnessed.

Q: What about Ranariddh?

A: Well, Ranariddh of course also respects President Soeharto,
but the most important thing is to solicit the respect of Hun Sen
as he is the most powerful man there.

If Hun Sen does not listen to you, whatever you say, he is the
man in power in Cambodia, not Ranariddh. The prince is somewhere
in Paris. But he is not (the one with power). Again he is not.

Q: After spending so much time abroad, did it feel strange to
return to Indonesia?

A: I have never applied for any other citizenship abroad and I
still represent Indonesia, and even the UN pays for my trips home
to Indonesia every two years.

Being abroad a long time does not necessarily wash away our
nationalism. In fact, the experience could strengthen our
nationalism... I'm an Indonesian, not an American or Thai.