Understanding the Significances and Changes in Diplomacy Through Indonesia’s Ambassador in Venezuela

By Chiara Farahangiz Samandari International Relations Student at International University Liaison Indonesia Email: chiarasamandari@gmail.com

Venezuela is a multi-crisis country. They have been facing economic, political, and social crises within the past year—the economic crisis initially caused by inflation was then exaggerated by Western sanctions, consequently leading to a hyperinflation, whilst a power struggle between the government and the opposition has exacerbated the situation. As the circumstances worsen, by 2021, six million Venezuelans have no other choice but to leave the country through both, legal and illegal means to neighboring countries such as Colombia, Chile, and Brazil – prompting social frictions and xenophobia in host countries.

Even so, the turmoil Venezuela is facing does not affect the good bilateral relationship between Indonesia and Venezuela, as mutual visits, cooperation, and agreements are constantly done. Recently, both countries signed an MoU to establish a Political Consultation Mechanism during the 60th Non-Alignment Movement (NAM) anniversary. Indonesia’s ambassador to Venezuela, who is accredited to Trinidad & Tobago, Grenada, St. Lucia, Dominica, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines – H.E. Imam Edy Mulyono – explained that in being a representative of Indonesia, there are five diplomatic functions that must be fulfilled based on the 1961 Vienna Convention, namely:

5 INDONESIA’S DIPLOMATIC FUNCTIONS IN VENEZUELA

1. Representing

Ambassadors and diplomats do not only represent their country in conferences, ceremonies or diplomatic receptions, but must also be well-mannered and possess good interpersonal skills.

2. Negotiating

Ambassadors and diplomats should be able to negotiate with the government and other stakeholders to achieve a consensus that serves their interests.

3. Promoting

Ambassadors and diplomats are also required to promote good economic and sociocultural relations not only to the government of the host country but also to stakeholders involved. Indonesia, through the Indonesian Embassy in Caracas, alongside actively promoting Indonesian culture and tourism, recently hosted a meet and greet session with Venezuelan entrepreneurs to discuss opportunities in trade and investment.

4. Reporting

Representatives should report to their home country. The Indonesian embassy in Caracas serves this function by routinely reporting to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other stakeholders with respect to political, security, economical, and socio-cultural issues as well as its development in host countries.

5. Protecting

Ambassadors and diplomats also protect the national interest of the sending state. One of the priorities of Indonesia’s foreign policy in the period of 2019 to 2024, as an example, is to place a particular attention and protection on overseas workers.

In addition, His Excellency then reminded that language is the weapon in diplomacy and for that reason, mastering foreign languages, particularly the six official languages of the United Nations, such as Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish, is of paramount importance in carrying diplomatic duties. This includes, for instance, understanding basic conversations and phrases. Even simply having the basic knowledge of a language, perhaps by knowing how to say ‘hello’, ‘good afternoon’, or ‘thank you’ reflect one’s willingness to learn and respect other cultures, thus paving the way for further communication, persuasion, and negotiation.

The world today, however – being a world that always advances forward – has introduced new ways of practicing diplomacy and factors that impact it. The ambassador introduced fast development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and the emergence of nonstate actors as progressive factors that allows for the existence of virtual diplomacy and public diplomacy, respectively.

the growing participation of non-State actors marks the change of international politics.

Whilst the former utilizes technology and cyberspace to conduct diplomacy, such as by having virtual business forums as Latin American and Caribbean countries have been doing with Indonesia through the INA- LAC forum, the latter aims to influence public opinion and attitudes of actors in other states. In this case, Indonesia utilizes its vast network of exchange students to promote Indonesian culture to other countries. In addition, diplomatic actors these days also make use of social networking sites to engage with both, the domestic audience and most importantly, with foreign audience, providing information, sharing their experiences, and promoting their home countries.

The function of ambassadors and diplomats has indeed grown far beyond the ones listed in the Vienna Convention – as it has also turned out, citizens too, today, hold great significance to public diplomacy and thus are ambassadors themselves. As His Excellency, Imam Eddy Mulyono, remarked, the growing participation of non-State actors marks the change of international politics.

Autobiography: Chiara F. Samandari is an International Relations undergraduate student interested in humanitarian issues. She has written various articles and copies during her internships at Kompas Muda, Kumparan and Youth of Indonesia. She is currently writing an article on the dangers of the fast fashion industry as well as a research paper on human trafficking in Southeast Asia.