[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Page 19361]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                       TRIBUTE TO EDWARD MASTERS

 Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, as Chairman of the Subcommittee on 
East Asian and Pacific Affairs, I would like to extend my appreciation 
and congratulations to former Ambassador Edward Masters on the occasion 
of his retirement on October 18 from his position as President of 
United States-Indonesia Society.
  During his 30-year career in the Foreign Service, in which he reached 
the senior rank of Career Minister, Ambassador Masters served as U.S. 
Ambassador to Indonesia and Bangladesh and Deputy Chief of Mission to 
Thailand. He also held posts in India and Pakistan and an assignment as 
director of the State Department's Office of East Asian Regional 
Affairs that involved policy coordination for the entire area.
  Indonesia figured prominently in both Ambassador Masters' diplomatic 
and private sector careers. As Political Counselor of the United States 
Embassy in Jakarta from 1964-68, he worked on reconstructing U.S. 
relations with Indonesia at a very difficult time. This included 
closing out our economic aid, information and Peace Corps programs 
because of the highly adverse political situation in Indonesia. Toward 
the end of that period, he worked with various elements of the U.S. 
Government and NGOs to reinstitute some of those programs but to do so 
in a way commensurate with Indonesian culture and sensitivities. He is, 
in fact, particularly known in both Indonesia and the United States for 
his ability to work effectively in the Indonesian environment.
  As United States Ambassador from late 1977 until the end of 1981, one 
of his major responsibilities was managing a large and very important 
economic aid program. He worked in particular and in detail on the 
Provincial Development Program, the programs to expand Indonesia's food 
grain production and enhance human resources development. Toward the 
end of his tour he organized various elements of the mission to develop 
programs to get the U.S. Government more effectively behind the 
programs to develop Indonesia's private sector and increase cooperation 
between that sector and the United States.
  In 1994, Ambassador Masters was instrumental in forming the United 
States-Indonesia Society. The Society is the preeminent institution in 
the United States devoted to developing a broad range of programs aimed 
at developing greater awareness and appreciation about Indonesia and 
the importance of the U.S.-Indonesia relationship in all major sectors 
in the U.S. Ambassador Masters has given briefings throughout the 
United States to academic institutions and other interested groups. He 
has provided witness testimony on numerous occasions before the Senate 
and House Foreign Relations Subcommittees on East Asian and Pacific 
Affairs on numerous occasions. He has organized conferences and other 
forums bringing Indonesians and Americans together to discuss short and 
long-term issues of mutual concern. One such conference he organized 
last October in cooperation with the Embassy of Indonesia in Washington 
DC., brought some of the most impressive, influential, and 
knowledgeable individuals from Indonesia and the United States to 
discuss the 50 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries 
and to provide policy suggestions to both governments on how to 
strengthen ties in the new millennium.
  On September 28, 1998 the Indonesian government recognized Ambassador 
Masters' valuable contributions and decorated him with the Bintang 
Mahaputra Utama, the second highest award given by the Government of 
Indonesia for his commitment and contribution to forging closer ties 
between the U.S. and Indonesia.
  As Chairman, I would also like to recognize and say thanks Ambassador 
Masters for the valuable work he has done. When I began my tenure as 
Chairman, Indonesia was--unfortunately--largely ignored in the United 
States. Despite being the fourth largest country in the world, and the 
largest Muslim country, its accomplishments and its importance to the 
United States as a friend and ally were largely overlooked and reduced 
to occasional tongue-lashings regrading Timor Timur.
  I made changing that situation a top priority of my chairmanship. And 
my job was made a lot easier by Ambassador Masters.
  The United States-Indonesia Society has greatly shaped, increased 
awareness and knowledge and provided support to those of us in the 
United States, including both houses of Congress, the administration 
and the government, the press, NGO community, academia and the 
population at large on the importance of Indonesia to the United 
States. Over the last two years this Society has become even more 
essential in helping the United States to understand the complex 
dynamics involved in moving from an authoritarian regime to the third 
largest democracy in the world.
  I understand why Ambassador Masters has decided to step down as 
President; he has earned the respite. But those of us concerned with 
the U.S.-Indonesia relationship will surely miss him and his steady 
hand at the tiller. I can only profoundly thank him for his many years 
of public service to the United States, and to his life-long commitment 
to improving relations between the United States and Indonesia. As the 
Indonesians would say, ``Terima kasih banyak.''

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