Deep in diplomacy

THERE has been a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months, much of this felt by road users in Kuala Lumpur.

Indeed, friends have asked me why there’s been so much traffic in town, often accompanied by videos of police outriders escorting cars with fluttering flags zipping past and frustrated messages about being late as a result – cue the mutterings about whether such courtesies are necessary – but it’s not every year that Malaysia gets to be the Asean Chair.

This responsibility entrusted to us by the regional community – according to Article 31 of the Asean Charter, established in alphabetical order – has elevated our visibility in the world as we deliver important responsibilities.

The upcoming accession of Timor-Leste as the 11th member of Asean in October – although the culmination of a process of many years – is one such feather in our cap.

In concert with other members we have also released strong joint statements about the conflict in Gaza and proposed the need to reform the United Nations.

Other countries from across the world have also recognised the importance of Asean, and so many countries have sent leaders to hold dialogues on regional and global issues.

Sometimes these are represented by heads of state apart from during the Asean Summit – notably President Recep Erdogan of Turkiye in February and President Xi Jinping of China in April.

Behind the scenes is the track two diplomacy that has been ongoing alongside official meetings. These include roundtables organised by NGOs on democracy and human rights.

This is particularly important for advocates working in the less stable parts of Asean: in bringing stakeholders together for the first time, coordinated plans of action can be formulated with the support of civil society partners from across the region.

This of course prods the perennial tension between the famed principle of non-interference and the Asean Charter’s simultaneous commitment to the “principles of democracy, the rule of law and good governance, respect for and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms”.

We must learn from the lessons of other multilateral organisations and evolve in such a way that the balance of principles leads to outcomes that bring peace and prosperity to all people in all member states.

Apart from meetings in Malaysia, our Prime Minister has also been doing a fair bit of travelling – too much, in the eyes of critics, who have said that he should stop personally leading foreign delegates and trade missions that could be done by other Cabinet ministers instead.

Only hindsight will tell whether the balance is right.

At least on Palestine, it seems Malaysia’s efforts have been appreciated especially by those in the Middle East who feel that their own leaders could do more although we continue to assert that much more could also be done for the Palestinians who are already in Malaysia, including better access to education, health and work.

It has also been a busy time for diplomats in Malaysia, with many national days occurring back-to-back. Their content reflects the priorities of the time and the individual ambassador’s preferences. For instance, Romanian receptions always feature paintings, Croatian ones music and Italy’s famous National Day includes cars and a fashion show.

National cuisines are also a huge highlight, with Japan and Australia particularly topping the leaderboard on this front.

The nature of ambassadorial tenures means that goodbyes are inevitable, and recently we said farewell to the German ambassador Dr Peter Blomeyer whose many musical evenings I shall miss, and also to the Austrian ambassador Andreas Launer with whom I worked on a unique project involving the Tugu Negara and the statue of Tunku Abdul Rahman at Parliament – both were sculpted by Austrian Tan Sri Felix de Weldon.

It’s fascinating to follow diplomats’ later development as well: in some cases Malaysia is their final posting before retirement; in others it’s their first, and years from now they will be posted in London or Washington or become Secretary General of their foreign ministry (one recent example is Vijay Gokhale who was Indian High Commissioner to Malaysia from 2010 to 2013).

Often, former ambassadors miss Malaysia so much they return at every opportunity to catch up on political developments (they become so invested about our political personalities) or engage with the active fraternity of the Ambassadors’ Roundtable.

However, recent attention is on a possible incoming ambassador from the United States of America, Nick Adams, whose past statements have raised eyebrows and some protests.

I would not want to preempt the US Senate nor Wisma Putra, but I dare say that many unique individuals have become converted to appreciate our customs, our values and our way of life before!

Tunku Zain Al-‘Abidin is founding president of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs.

The views expressed here are the writer’s own.