T

he nation is saddened by the death of Indonesian Ambassador to Pakistan Burhan Muhammad. Burhan died after eight days of treatment at Singapore General Hospital for severe burns he received in a helicopter crash in Pakistan. He followed his wife Hery Listyawati who died in the same crash. Burhan deserves our respect and honor because he died while on a mission to represent Indonesia.

Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi praised Burhan as '€œa very successful diplomat'€ although he was not a career diplomat. His expertise and experience as a senior National Intelligence Agency (BIN) official was very helpful in understanding Pakistan and how to boost ties between the two countries, and to assess the security situation there and in Afghanistan, which is related to Indonesia'€™s security problems, especially on terrorism.

The ambassador, who took up the post in November 2012, was truly a brave diplomat because without hesitation he fulfilled the invitation of the Pakistani government to travel to the region where the crash occurred and was not affected by the general perception outside Pakistan that the situation was unsafe there. His wife also supported his decision because she believed the Pakistani government would do its utmost to ensure the safety of its guests.

The helicopter was carrying Burhan and other foreign envoys and their spouses to attend an official event hosted by Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif when it crashed as it was about to land in the mountains of Gilgit-Balistan in northern Pakistan on May 8. The ambassadors of Norway and the Philippines, as well as the wife of the Malaysian ambassador to Islamabad also died in the tragic accident. Three Pakistani crew members were also killed while 12 passengers were injured.

The Taliban claimed it was responsible for the crash but this has been totally denied by people who were on the scene at the time, including the Malaysian envoy, Hasrul Sani Mujtabar, and Argentinean Ambassador Rodolfo Martin Saravia.

We believe that Pakistan did its best before and after the accident. We conclude the crash was purely a result of technical problems. As the host, the tragedy was an embarrassment for Islamabad, and it was therefore very understandable that Pakistan was upset with the Taliban'€™s claim. The account by the Pakistan military of the accident has been supported by credible eyewitnesses.

We thank the Pakistani government for its quick and helpful efforts in the repatriation of Burhan and his late wife after the accident and as we mourn his loss we recall his dedication to the nation.