Indonesian FM Ali Alatas passes away
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Chairman of Presidential Advisory Board and former Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Alatas passed away at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore at 7:30 local time on Thursday morning. (December 11th, 2008)
Contacted by ANTARA here on Thursday, Chief of Data and Information Bureau of Presidential Advisory Board Kamarullhah Halim confirmed that Alatas did pass away.
"I have just contacted our embassy in Singapore and received an information that Alatas passed away at 7:30 a.m. local time and thus everything is being made ready," Kamarullah said.
But he added that he did not know the kind of disease the former Indonesian foreign minister suffered from.
"Preparation to fly Alatas` body to Jakarta is being discussed by the embassy and Alatas` family," Kamarrullah said, adding that further information could be obtained in the next few hours.
Ali Alatas was born on November 4, 1932 in Jakarta, and graduated from the Academy for the Indonesian Foreign Service in 1954, and from the Faculty of Law at the University of Indonesia in 1956.
He worked for the Indonesian Foreign Service in the Department of Foreign Affairs between 1954 and 1988.
During that time he held various positions at the Ministry and was stationed as diplomat in various Embassies of Indonesia, including in Bangkok and Washington D.C., as well as serving as Indonesian Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva (1975-1978) and New York (1982-1988).
Between 1988 and 1999, Alatas served as Foreign Affairs Minister of Indonesia.
Alatas was appointed an envoy of the United Nations Secretary General in 2005 for promoting a comprehensive agenda put forward in the report "In larger Freedom: Towards Development, Security and Human Rights for All."
He served as a member of the United Nations High Level Group on Alliance of Civilizations 2005-2006, and was a member of the Eminent Persons Group on the ASEAN Charter between 2005 and 2007.
He had been an adviser and a special envoy of the President of the Republic of Indonesia since 2003.
He had participated in and chaired numerous international seminars and symposia on strategic, political and economic issues. In addition, he has written many articles on these issues in national as well as international publications. (*)
Source of news: Antara Labels: Indonesia News, Indonesian Consulate, KBRI Washington DC, kjri Chicago, Konsulat Indonesia