List of ambassadors of Australia to Indonesia

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Ambassador of Australia to Indonesia
Incumbent
Penny Williams
since 14 April 2021
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
StyleHer Excellency
Reports toMinister for Foreign Affairs
ResidenceJakarta
NominatorPrime Minister of Australia
AppointerGovernor General of Australia
Inaugural holderJohn Hood (Ambassador)
FormationApril 1950
WebsiteAustralian Embassy, Indonesia

The ambassador of Australia to Indonesia is an officer of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the head of the Embassy of the Commonwealth of Australia to the Republic of Indonesia. The position has the rank and status of an ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary and the Embassy in Jakarta is Australia's largest embassy and one of Australia's most important overseas posts.[1] The Embassy is assisted in their work by Consulates in Bali (since 1981), Makassar (since 2016) and Surabaya (since 2017).[2]

The current ambassador, since April 2021, is Penny Williams.

Posting history[edit]

The Chartered Bank Building at Kali Besar West, Batavia, site of the Australian Trade Commission from 1935.

On 30 August 1933 the Minister for Commerce, Frederick Stewart, secured Cabinet approval for the establishment of several Trade Commissions in the East, with Batavia in the Netherlands East Indies being one of the most likely locations.[3] However a decision to appoint a commissioner was delayed pending the report of the Australian Eastern Mission, Attorney General and Minister for External Affairs John Latham's fact-finding mission to the Far East, which found a dire need for Australian trade representative to improve mercantile connections in the region.[4][5] Following Latham's return the Australian Government agreed to appoint a new Trade Commissioner, and the appointment of Charles Edward Critchley to Batavia, alongside appointments to Tokyo and Shanghai, was announced on 7 June 1935 by acting Prime Minister Earle Page.[6] Arriving in September, Critchley met with Governor-General Bonifacius Cornelis de Jonge and set up offices in the Chartered Bank Building in Tambora, Old Batavia.[7] In January 1938, Critchley was succeeded by Herbert Anton Peterson, who was given the new title of "Australian Government Commissioner", which was changed to remove confusion that the "Trade Commissioner" was merely a commercial representative.[8] Commissioner Peterson served until escaping to Australia a few days after the Japanese invasion of Java in 1942.

Early Australian arrangements to establish diplomatic relations with Indonesia after the Indonesian proclamation of Independence on 17 August 1945 were complicated by the British and Dutch involvement in military activities in Indonesia in the next few years. Australia was dissuaded from establishing a consulate-general in Batavia in 1945 and instead sent a political representative to be attached to the Allied Forces, Netherlands East Indies (AFNEI), the command controlling areas of the Dutch East Indies liberated from Japanese forces.[9] William Macmahon Ball, the Australian Political Representative to the AFNEI, arrived in Batavia on 7 November 1945 and returned to Australia in December 1945. In March 1946 the Department of External Affairs appointed Alfred Deakin Brookes as the new Political Representative. However, his departure in early June, owing to ill health, coincided with the arrival of Justice Richard Kirby, who acted as Political Representative in his absence before returning to Australia on 28 July 1946. Bertram Ballard was appointed as Australian Political Representative with AFNEI on 16 August 1946, as political representative Ballard was advised by Minister for External Affairs, Herbert Evatt directed him to establish informal relations with the Indonesians and to act as Australia's de facto representative to the republican government in Jogjakarta.[9]

The post of Consul-General was created following the departure of AFNEI in late 1946 following the Indonesia-Dutch settlement, and Ballard was formally appointed Consul-General on 5 December 1946 and accredited by the Netherlands East Indies Government on 12 February 1947. He held this appointment until September 1947 when Charles Eaton, the former Consul to Portuguese Timor, replaced him. In April 1950, the Consulate-General in Jakarta was raised to the status of an embassy, with the first Australian ambassador to Indonesia, John Hood, appointed by External Affairs Minister Percy Spender.[9]

List of heads of mission[edit]

Two men in light-coloured clothing, seated on a couch
Eaton as Australian Consul-General to Indonesia, with Sukarno in 1947
Ordinal Officeholder Title Term start date Term end date Time in office Notes
n/a Charles Edward Critchley Trade Commissioner 7 June 1935 (1935-06-07) January 1938 (1938-01) 2 years, 6 months
n/a Herbert Anton Peterson Commissioner January 1938 (1938-01) 3 March 1942 (1942-03-03) 4 years, 2 months [10][11]
n/a William Macmahon Ball Political Representative 7 November 1945 (1945-11-07) December 1945 (1945-12) 1 month
n/a Alfred Deakin Brookes March 1946 (1946-03) June 1946 (1946-06) 3 months
n/a Richard Kirby Acting Political Representative June 1946 (1946-06) 28 July 1946 (1946-07-28) 1 month
n/a Bertram Ballard Political Representative 6 August 1946 (1946-08-06) 5 November 1946 (1946-11-05) 1 year, 31 days
Consul-General 5 December 1946 (1946-12-05) September 1947 (1947-09)
n/a Group Captain Charles Eaton OBE, AFC September 1947 (1947-09) April 1950 (1950-04) 2 years, 7 months
1 John Hood Ambassador of Australia to Indonesia 24 June 1950 (1950-06-24) 1953 (1953) 2–3 years [12]
2 Charles Kevin Minister and Charge d'Affaires 11 March 1953 (1953-03-11) 1955 (1955) 1–2 years [12][13][14]
3 Walter Crocker CBE Ambassador of Australia to Indonesia 7 April 1955 (1955-04-07) 1957 (1957) 1–2 years [12]
4 Laurence McIntyre CBE 28 January 1957 (1957-01-28) 1960 (1960) 2–3 years [12]
5 Patrick Shaw CBE 6 March 1960 (1960-03-06) 1962 (1962) 1–2 years [12]
6 K. C. O. Shann CBE 6 November 1962 (1962-11-06) 1966 (1966) 3–4 years [12]
7 Max Loveday 6 April 1966 (1966-04-06) 1969 (1969) 2–3 years [12]
8 Gordon Jockel CBE 7 March 1969 (1969-03-07) 1972 (1972) 2–3 years [12]
9 Robert Furlonger 1 March 1972 (1972-03-01) 1975 (1975) 2–3 years [12]
10 Richard Woolcott 3 March 1975 (1975-03-03) 1978 (1978) 2–3 years [12][15][note a]
11 Tom Critchley AO, CBE 17 May 1978 (1978-05-17) 1981 (1981) 2–3 years [12][16]
12 Rawdon Dalrymple AO 18 March 1981 (1981-03-18) 1985 (1985) 3–4 years [12][17][18]
13 Bill Morrison AO 28 April 1985 (1985-04-28) 1989 (1989) 3–4 years [12]
14 Philip Flood AO 2 February 1989 (1989-02-02) 1993 (1993) 3–4 years [12]
15 Allan Taylor AM 6 April 1993 (1993-04-06) 1996 (1996) 2–3 years [19]
16 John McCarthy AO 1996 (1996) 2001 (2001) 4–5 years [20][21]
17 Ric Smith AO 2001 (2001) 2003 (2003) 1–2 years
18 David Ritchie AO 2003 (2003) 2005 (2005) 1–2 years [note b]
19 Bill Farmer AO 2005 (2005) 2010 (2010) 13–14 years [22]
20 Greg Moriarty August 2010 (2010-08) 2014 (2014) 3–4 years
21 Paul Grigson February 2015 (2015-02) 27 February 2018 (2018-02-27) 3 years [23][24][note c]
22 Gary Quinlan AO 27 February 2018 (2018-02-27) 14 April 2021 (2021-04-14) 3 years, 46 days [25][note d]
23 Penny Williams PSM 1 September 2021 (2021-09-01) incumbent 2 years, 226 days [26]
^[note a] : Woolcott was Australian ambassador in Jakarta when difficulties over developments in Portuguese Timor, later Timor Leste, came to a head.
^[note b] : There was initially a slight delay in Jakarta before Ritchie's appointment was approved. This was reportedly because of some concerns in the Indonesian Parliament about the possible approach that Ritchie might take towards Indonesian policy in Papua in responding to problems of regional conflict in the province.[27]
^[note c] : On 29 April 2015 the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced that Grigson would be recalled to Canberra for consultations following the execution of two Australians in Indonesia who had been convicted of drug smuggling. Grigson returned to his post in Jakarta in early June after being in Canberra for consultations for about six weeks.
^[note d] : In early April 2020, Quinlan temporarily relocated to Australia because of his vulnerability to COVID-19 infections. He was expected to continue to oversee Australian embassy operations in Jakarta from Canberra.[28]

Consuls-General[edit]

Bali[edit]

Main article: List of Consuls-General of Australia in Bali

Makassar[edit]

Name Start of term End of term Notes
Richard Mathews 22 March 2016 2020 [29]
Bronwyn Robbins 26 June 2020 on-going [30]

Surabaya[edit]

Name Start of term End of term Notes
Chris Barnes 9 August 2017 20 December 2021 [31]
Fiona Hoggart 20 December 2021 incumbent [32]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ CA 2744: Australian Embassy, Republic of Indonesia [Djakarta/Jakarta], National Archives of Australia, retrieved 11 January 2016
  2. ^ Bishop, Julie (26 February 2017). "Australia to open new Consulate-General in Surabaya" (Media release). Minister for Foreign Affairs. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  3. ^ Schevdin, Boris (2008). Emissaries of trade : a history of the Australian Trade Commissioner Service. Barton, ACT: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. p. 47.
  4. ^ Schevdin, Boris, pp. 50-51.
  5. ^ "TRADE WITH THE EAST". The Barrier Miner. Vol. XLVI, no. 13, 861 (HOME ed.). New South Wales, Australia. 21 December 1933. p. 5. Retrieved 4 May 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "TRADE". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 30, 399. 8 June 1935. p. 19. Retrieved 4 May 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "TRADE COMMISSIONER IN BATAVIA". The Courier-Mail. No. 635. Brisbane. 11 September 1935. p. 6. Retrieved 25 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ "COMMISSIONERS". The Canberra Times. Vol. 12, no. 3215. 7 January 1938. p. 1. Retrieved 25 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^ a b c Metcalf, Karl (2001), "Chapter 2: External Affairs records", Near Neighbours: Records on Australia's Relations with Indonesia, Canberra: National Archives of Australia, archived from the original on 30 August 2014
  10. ^ "Trade Commissioner For Netherlands India". The Telegraph (SECOND ed.). Queensland, Australia. 15 January 1938. p. 11. Retrieved 25 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  11. ^ "Retirement of Mr. H. A. Peterson". The Canberra Times. Vol. 27, no. 7, 960. 28 February 1953. p. 4. Retrieved 25 June 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, ed. (1995). Statement of Service: Appointments and Biographies. Canberra: Australian Government.
  13. ^ Beaumont, Joan (2000). "John Charles George Kevin (1909–1968)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 15. Australian National University. ISSN 1833-7538. Archived from the original on 22 September 2015.
  14. ^ "Mr. C. Kevin for Indonesia". The Canberra Times. ACT. 6 January 1953. p. 2.
  15. ^ Way, Wendy, ed. (2000), Documents on Australian Foreign Policy: Australia and the Indonesian Incorporation of Portuguese Timor, 1974–1976, Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, ISBN 0-522-84928-8
  16. ^ Stephens, Tony (25 July 2009). "Supported Asian Independence". The Age.
  17. ^ Dalrymple, Rawdon (Summer 2000). "Indonesia in the balance". International Journal. 55 (3).
  18. ^ Dalrymple, Rawdon (2003). Continental Drift: Australia's Search for a Regional Identity. Aldershot: Ashgate publishing company.
  19. ^ Farmer, Bill. "Death of Ambassador Allan Taylor, AM" (Press release). [Taylor had been ambassador]... at a challenging time in the bilateral relationship, when Allan's patience, resilience and commitment were crucial in helping to maintain close ties between our two governments.
  20. ^ Suryodiningrat, Meidyatama (8 December 2000). "Ambassador McCarthy ends 'satisfying' four years in RI". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 22 December 2014.
  21. ^ McCarthy, John (16 March 2015). "Overcoming the Australia-Indonesia cultural divide". ANU East Asia Forum.
  22. ^ Khalik, Abdul; Siagian, Sabam (3 July 2010), "Bill Farmer: Career prepared me for Indonesian assignment", The Jakarta Post, archived from the original on 22 December 2014
  23. ^ Ririhena, Yohanna (4 December 2014). "PM Abbott appoints Paul Grigson as new envoy to RI". The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 21 December 2014.
  24. ^ Bachelard, Michael; Olding, Rachel (2 December 2014). "Paul Grigson appointed ambassador to Indonesia". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 22 February 2015.
  25. ^ Bishop, Julie (27 February 2018). "Ambassador to Indonesia" (Press release). Australian Government.
  26. ^ Septiari, Dian (2 September 2021). "Australia's first woman envoy in Jakarta begins term". The Jakarta Post. Williams is the first woman to be appointed by the Australian Government as ambassador to Indonesia
  27. ^ "House approves Australia's new ambassador". The Jakarta Post. 24 January 2003. Archived from the original on 31 December 2014.
  28. ^ "DFAT statement on arrangements at the Australian Embassy in Jakarta". Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Press release). Australian Government. 9 April 2020.
  29. ^ Bishop, Julie (22 March 2016). "Consul-General in Makassar" (Media release). Minister for Foreign Affairs. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  30. ^ Payne, Marise (26 June 2020), 'Consul-General in Makassar' (Media release). Minister for Foreign Affairs. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 26 June 2020.
  31. ^ Bishop, Julie (9 August 2017). "Consul-General in Surabaya" (Media release). Minister for Foreign Affairs. Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  32. ^ Payne, Marise (20 December 2021). "Consul-General in Surabaya". Minister for Foreign Affairs, Australian Government. Retrieved 2 April 2022.

External links[edit]

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