Your comments:

People must have a chance and those who have had the chance to be attach*s can keep abreast of the skills required. Where there is a will, there is a way. We just have to give them the benefit of the doubt that they can if they want to.

Rudyanto
Denpasar

I still remember growing up abroad in the diplomatic circle within the United Nations enclave in the late 60s, 70s, 80s and early 90s. During a long posting in Europe, my parents would spend time out of their busy schedule to learn French.

They wanted to assimilate better with the host countrymen in those days. French was often used as a language of diplomacy. Nowadays, English is widely used. Nevertheless my parents were also perfect English speakers, some Dutch and also a great amount of Thai being used during their last posting.

My mother was chosen on various occasion by the Indonesian embassy due to her language abilities in those days to be a public speaker in either French or English to lead several diplomatic and UN women's gatherings.

Therefore I don't see the excuse in this day and age for any Indonesian diplomat being unable to learn a foreign language other than English. It would not only benefit them in the long run, but also boost cooperation of mutual respect and understanding during their term in the host country.

K.D.
Jakarta

I'm an Australian and have lived in Indonesia for 10 years. I had a very positive experience at the Indonesian Embassy in Sydney some years ago. I was given a coffee and had a chat with embassy staff while I waited for my immigration documents to be finalized, I was amazed. It's nice to say something good for a change.

Tony G
Jakarta

I've been living in Ottawa for one-and-a-half years and I've been learning English since I was a little kid. I still have difficulties communicating with local English speakers here; it always takes time to be fluent in a language or master a second or third language. People have different linguistic abilities.

I once met an Italian diplomat and his English was worse than mine. I also called the Dominican embassy once and the lady who answered the phone had problems speaking English. The English of some Chinese diplomats is also bad. I knew some Indonesian diplomats here in Ottawa and they spoke fairly good English.

Veronika Napitupulu
Ottawa, Canada

I find many comments here rather harsh, particularly about Indonesian diplomats being the worst. I'm not going to respond by regurgitating the ministry's line on human resources development, nor am I going to go over the many successes we've achieved in the name of furthering Indonesian interests abroad and at home.

I'll leave that for more senior officials to explain. I just think that maybe it's about time the commentators met some of the younger diplomats in the ministry. You'd be surprised at how well-qualified (yet low-key) we are; The Jakarta Post even said so in the editorial.

And most times we are driven by the goals set out by our (also) well-qualified seniors. Of course, saying that all Indonesian diplomats are well-versed in English and academically sound is as much a generalization as saying all Indonesian diplomats are not.

We've got them all in the ministry; we are as diverse as Indonesia itself. But these days, those with merit succeed over those without. I used to complain like many of you, living abroad and thinking I was better than most Indonesian diplomats. But then I decided to not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk.

Santo Darmosumarto
Jakarta

It is shameful to not know English these days, especially for foreign affairs officials, mastery of English is a must for those who represent the government abroad. How can they do their job properly if they have no English-speaking skills?

Dwi Didya S.
Surabaya

The lack of English proficiency is not only a problem for foreign ministry officials, but also for the majority of Indonesian people compared to other countries.

Many bright Indonesian students in science and technological majors can't study overseas, because of the language barrier.

Although they have learned English for at least six years, many of them don't have the basic proficiency in English to study aboard. How can that happen?

Learning English in most public schools in Indonesia is a useless. The curriculum, teachers, books, and laboratories are poor. In addition, the public is not that interested in learning English, because their basic necessities aren't yet fulfilled.

The worst thing is that the government officials only think of their own problems (such as how to markup the prices of airline tickets) and don't care about these problems. So, the Indonesia foreign official can't speak English, who cares?

Liger
Canada

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