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President swears in envoys to Sudan, the Philippines and New Zealand
Three new Indonesian ambassadors were sworn in on Wednesday, including the first woman ambassador from Papua.
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President Joko Widodo (left) congratulates newly inaugurated Indonesian Ambassador to New Zealand Fientje Maritje Suebu (second right) during a small ceremony held at the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Wednesday. Fientje is Indonesia's first woman ambassador of Papuan descent. (Presidential Palace Press Bureau/Rusman)
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo swore in three new envoys on Wednesday, including the nation’s first woman ambassador of Papuan descent.
Agus Widjojo, formerly the governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) who under the Jokowi administration led and abandoned contentious efforts to heal old wounds left from the Communist purge of 1965, will head to Manila as Indonesian ambassador to the Philippines, the Marshall Islands and Palau.
The retired army general was one of the key figures behind the post-Soeharto reforms on the Indonesian Military (TNI) and will continue the tradition of having defense-linked figures serving as ambassador in Manila.
He recently sparked debate for proposing the creation of a ministry in charge of overseeing the National Police to formulate better domestic security policies.
Besides Agus, career diplomats Sunarko and Fientje Maritje Suebu were also sworn in on Wednesday, as ambassadors to Sudan and New Zealand, respectively.
Sunarko, formerly the Indonesian consul general in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and the Foreign Ministry’s director for Middle Eastern affairs before that, is to take up the post in Sudan’s capital Khartoum.
Read also: Jokowi swears in 17 new ambassadors to fill vacant posts
Fientje, former deputy chief of mission in India, will now represent Indonesia in Wellington as ambassador to New Zealand, replacing the popular country music enthusiast and politician, Tantowi Yahya.
Having worked as a career diplomat for more than 30 years, Fientje will now serve as the country’s first woman ambassador from Papua, in a diplomatic post that is vital to Indonesian interests in the South Pacific.
Besides New Zealand, she will also be accredited to several Pacific island nations: Samoa, Tonga, the Cook Islands and Niue.
For the time being, her predecessor Tantowi will continue to serve as ambassador-at-large for Pacific affairs.
Wednesday’s brief inauguration ceremony was concluded with congratulatory messages from Jokowi and Vice President Ma'ruf Amin. Also present were senior security minister Mahfud MD, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and the head of state protocol at the State Palace, Andy Rachmianto.
