TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Shaking the Foreign Ministry out of its comfort zone?
While Indonesia needs to increase its defense capabilities, it is equally important as an emerging middle power for the country to enhance its role as a peacemaker.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
International duty: Indonesian women soldiers gear up for their United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo and Lebanon on Aug. 31, 2018. (Kompas/Nina Susilo)
In his thought-provoking piece, published in The Jakarta Post on May 13, Endy Bayuni, a long-time friend of the Foreign Ministry, suggested president-elect Prabowo Subianto consider a non-career diplomat to head the institution in his cabinet.
While each writer may have his or her own argument on the merits of who they believe best to lead Indonesia’s diplomacy, what strikes me the most is the main reasoning behind Endy’s suggestion, which is to “shake the ministry out of its comfort zone to come up with policies that reflect the current geopolitical reality”.
Fully recognizing president-elect Prabowo’s prerogative to appoint cabinet members, I question myself whether the ministry and its diplomats have become too complacent and by becoming so, have found themselves sitting in a comfort zone over the years.
As an Indonesian diplomat with more than three decades in this line of duty, I know for certain that it is against our nature to allow ourselves to live in a comfort zone amid dynamic global situations.
The international milieu that we are living in continues to change from era to era, and therefore the capacity to adapt and collaborate among various stakeholders is a must. This was evident during our struggle for independence, where diplomats and soldiers worked side by side to fight for our sovereignty and to gain international recognition.
Today’s challenges are indeed more complex and multidimensional. Foreign policy formulations and execution must fully take into account the interplay between domestic economic and security interests with regional and international developments. As such, underpinned by a set of principles and goals found within a democratic political system, our diplomats—career and non-career—continue to promote activism in diplomacy to seize new economic and political opportunities.
Living in continuous global uncertainty with perennial challenges, such as protracted conflicts and fierce economic competition, I can say with confidence that the politik luar negeri bebas aktif (independent and active principle) has allowed Indonesia to maneuver its diplomacy in a prudent and strategic manner.
