Veteran diplomat receives hero status

Jakarta: Veteran diplomat and former foreign minister Mochtar Kusumaatmadja was awarded national hero status for his contributions to diplomacy during the 1957 Djuanda Declaration and his concept of the archipelago.

“The concept of the archipelago was recognized by the world and proven to have brought peace to archipelagic nations through demarcation of clear territorial boundaries,” a press release issued Tuesday by the Foreign Ministry read.

The Djuanda Declaration was made on Dec. 13, 1957, declaring to the world that waters within and around the archipelagic country of Indonesia were part of the republic’s territory.

Eighty-two-year-old Mochtar, who is also a scholar at Padjajaran University’s School of Law, received the award — named after Ida Anak Agung Gde Agung, a historian and former foreign minister — at the ministry.

The award emphasizes diplomatic expertise by using sustainable methods to achieve peaceful ends, the statement read.

The judges for the award were scholar and the head of the board of Presidential advisors, Emil Salim, University of Indonesia scholar Anhar Gonggong, Foreign Ministry director general for information and public diplomacy Andri Hadi, Foreign Ministry secretary-general and former ambassador to the UK Rahardjo Djamtomo, and noted journalist August Parengkuan, the statement read.