27 October 2017 – In the body of knowledge of diplomatic studies, issues related to female diplomats rarely receive much attention. Partly related to historical development of the profession, partly related to the global gender situation, not many academics have touched upon the role of women in diplomacy. This is an unfortunate situation considering the number of female diplomats shows an increasing trend, several of whom have reached the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs (the Indonesian case is a good example).
IULI International Relations (INR) Department was proud to host a lecture on that very topic on Friday, October 27. Titled Female Ambassadors: Women in the Diplomatic Corps, the second lecture in “INR Distinguished Lecture Series” for this semester was delivered by H.E. Prianti Gagarin Djatmiko-Singgih.
H.E. Djatmiko-Singgih is one among a number of female Indonesian diplomats who have successfully attained the highest diplomatic rank. She is currently the minister’s Senior Advisor for Political, Legal and Security Affairs. From 2012–16 she was Indonesian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, also accredited to the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. She is one of a few ambassadors who had been tasked with concurrent representations to that many states. She has also served in Indonesian missions to the UN (in both Geneva and New York), the European Commission, the Kingdom of Belgium, and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.
Drawing from examples in the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ambassador explained the challenges commonly faced by female diplomats and ways to improve the situation. She herself had pioneered efforts to reform regulations related to women in the Ministry—and has been successful in doing that. A number of international and regional regulatory frameworks were also introduced to provide the audience with a big picture of the subject under discussion.
Considering that most IR departments draw a large number of females into their student bodies, the topic is relevant in the sense that it provides students with information about their potential future profession. Therefore not only was the lecture valuable academically, it was also so for practical reasons. It was delivered by a figure with real experiences in the field, who has been recognized for her efforts (H.E. Djatmiko-Singgih had won three awards for women-related achievements). IULI Rector Dr. Tutuko Prajogo, who attended the whole session, took opportunity to confirm that the Ambassador is indeed a person with great concern for gender equality—it was from her that years ago the Rector first learnt about the subject.
IULI International Relations Department thanks H.E. Prianti Gagarin Djatmiko-Singgih for her willingness to share experiences and insights with IULI students, and the Rector for the opportunity provided so the Lecture could happen. (SaK/MiE)
