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.