Inspection of Embassy Jakarta and Consulate General Surabaya, Indonesia

Embassy Jakarta experienced perhaps its finest hour during the December 2004 tsunami crisis, when the entire mission responded immediately and the public affairs section, in particular, made an all out effort that enhanced Indonesians’ view of the United States.

Office of Inspector General (OIG) found that the Ambassador plays a crucial leadership role at an embassy under a critical threat from terrorism, and his easy-going manner and leadership contributes to strong mission morale. Morale is also high because employees believe that whatever can be done to improve security is being done by the regional security officer, with Department of State support.

The Ambassador correctly assessed counterterrorism as the embassy’s top goal, engaging the combined efforts of the full mission. The Department of State’s Antiterrorism Assistance program has had striking success in Indonesia, where U.S.-trained personnel have contributed tangibly to the prosecution and prevention of terrorism. The reopening of a post in Medan is timely in that it can significantly support the tsunami-reconstruction effort and provide a U.S. presence on Indonesia’s second largest island, Sumatra. OIG also found that political and economic reporting is timely, sufficient, and analytical and that administrative operations for the past three years have been managed well by a senior management counselor. OIG, however, found several shortcomings, including:

• The consular sections at the embassy and Consulate General Surabaya have problems that include insufficient and poorly organized space, thin staffing, and an overwhelmed management. Public access is crowded, maze-like, and an eyesore at both posts.

• The embassy’s information technology structure requires investment.

• There are management control weaknesses in such operational areas as contract administration, inventory control, control of accountable forms, erroneous payment of invoices from schools in Jakarta and Surabaya, and the community support association. The most serious weaknesses are in contracting for health insurance.

If superimposed on a map of North America, the 17,000 islands of Indonesia would stretch from Oregon to Bermuda. The nation is important to the United States for its strategic location, population of 220 million, and resources. With more Muslims than the nations of the Middle East combined, Indonesia offers a singular opportunity for the United States to help persuade the Islamic world that the United States is a force for good.

Indonesia is the target of domestic and transnational terrorism, which seeks to thwart the country’s first real attempt at democracy and intimidate the West. Terrorist bombings in Bali (2002), in Jakarta at the Marriott Hotel (2003), and at the Australian Embassy (2004) are reminders of the danger. Indonesia lost upwards of 200,000 people when hit by the 2004 tsunami, but immediately received an enormous outpouring of public and private support from the United States. The Ambassador’s early insistence on using the U.S. military accounted for much of the rescue effort’s extraordinary impact. As a result, the tide of Indonesian public opinion, put off by the U.S. invasion of Iraq, has become more positive toward the United States. In the community of Aceh, hard hit by the disaster, gratitude and respect towards the United States is intense.

Indonesia’s efforts to provide legislative clarity and consistency in applying the law should, if persevered, strengthen Indonesia’s internal security, assist badly needed economic development, and help to coax private investment into productive channels. In all of these endeavors, U.S. agencies are supplying vigorous, effective support to Indonesia across a broad spectrum.

October 18, 2005