Winning Hearts and Minds: Public Diplomacy in ASEAN, edited by Sue-Ann Chia (Singapore International Foundation, 2022), 124 pages, US$37 (hardcover).
The phrase public diplomacy is an evolution in international relations. It adds meaning to interstate relations and studies the impact of public opinion formation and foreign policy execution. This implies that international relations can use the tools of traditional diplomacy to impact opinion, particularly among the public in other countries by using governmental mechanisms. More and more, the role of private groups, civil society, media, and now social media is growing bigger in creating awareness and developing an image for countries among the people of the world. Traditional diplomacy focused on official contacts in an effort to influence the foreign offices, slowly evolving to other state structures like parliament, the chancelleries, and decisionmakers. Of great importance were government-led exchange programs, language training, invitation programs for students, professionals and the like, as well as engaging with media. A country’s effort was to make an impact on a partner country by enhancing its own image and reputation in that state.
Newer definitions of public diplomacy have widened its precepts; these now go beyond state action. Public Diplomacy currently focuses on increasing the role of non-governmental players which would be either large organizations, non-governmental entities, private foundations, companies or institutions within countries, cities and states. The easier availability of information through new media and the expansion of the internet have enhanced the importance of image building in international relations. Public Diplomacy involves branding so that governments may improve their image and attain their longer-term policy objectives. For instance, within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Cambodian government would not like to be seen as authoritarian and would use its public diplomacy to alter this image.
Another aim of public diplomacy is advocacy, which uses several tactics to seek a change in the international perception of a country and of its public towards its leadership, its institutions, and its achievements. When a new leader takes over in a country like Jokowi did in Indonesia in 2014, or Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines in 2016, a conscious effort was made by such countries to provide a new impetus to the recognition of their leaders, their policies, and how they would impact their neighborhood, the region, and the wider world.
Public Diplomacy is conducted through open channels and needs to reflect the truth, because self-guided images are difficult to sustain in an environment where independent sources of information flow through the internet. Today, more is known about what happens in a country faster than what governments may want to be told. Myanmar, for instance, may want to keep a lid on how the military is dealing with the domestic opposition since the coup. In the past, military governments in Myanmar have successfully controlled the flow of information but now the flow of information is faster and easily available. This leads to opposition groups finding their own method of public diplomacy.
Public Diplomacy also includes lobbying institutions or interest groups in countries to attain its aims. While embassies on behalf of a government may do such activity, often there is the use of lobby groups, friends of the country, or invitation and support programs, including donations, to support common objectives and seek real results. Lobbying ministries, state owned enterprises, and parliamentary committees has become commonplace when seeking market access for particular products in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia. Public Diplomacy can be dismissed as propaganda, but in order to be valuable and effective it needs the ability to rescue itself from such a label.
Winning Hearts and Minds: Public Diplomacy in ASEAN brings together views from all ASEAN countries. It is published by the Singapore International Foundation who need commendation for their effort. The book explores how ASEAN countries have approached public diplomacy and how it has evolved with changing times and improvements in technology. It draws a distinction between the dominant role played by cultural diplomacy in the CLMV countries (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam), and the diplomacy of the other ASEAN countries whose efforts have included development cooperation and humanitarian aid.
The chapter on Singapore and public diplomacy by Alan Chong emphasizes the need for public diplomacy to be attentive to historical legacy and the consequent socio-emotional relationships which often determine audience . Singapore has perhaps got the maximum number of promotion agencies in the economic sector, as well as large foreign business and technology communities which is unique not only to an ASEAN country but in the world. Singapore, as the author says, needs to deal with globalization of people and cross-border economic activities, both of which were impacted by the pandemic. Whatever may happen to globalization—whether it surmounts the challenges it faces or not—Singapore is heavily invested in it and cannot remain an island, and it must continue to enhance its people’s diplomacy, so that non-state and state initiatives can bring more to the table for international relations. The Singapore International Foundation recalls its own volunteer programs in healthcare, education, and social entrepreneurship, and its promotion of multiculturalism and social change by connecting with artists. In Singapore, civil society’s contribution to public diplomacy has been emphatic. That has shaped the imagination of Singapore, and its projection both domestically and internationally.
The chapter kind of loses its way by focusing too much on Singapore’s domestic development through non-governmental initiatives and blunts the edge in trying to discuss Singapore’s international image particularly among ASEAN countries. This meandering approach to public diplomacy does not take into account that countries like Indonesia often view Singapore as its closest hospital, nearest bank and investment routing agency. These perceptions could have been brought out better in this chapter.
The chapter on Brunei by Hafimi Abdul Haadii is a brave one. Brunei is among the smallest of ASEAN countries with a population of under half a million and its public diplomacy is important so that Brunei is not forgotten among its neighbors or globally (pp. 23-29). The chapter vividly recalls what Brunei did in 2021 as ASEAN chair, in dealing with the pandemic and the problems in Myanmar. Brunei in 2020 voluntarily submitted a National Review of its progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. This certainly got Brunei noticed across the United Nations and ASEAN systems.
Brunei has helped to build human capacities through the Brunei-US English language project for ASEAN since 2012. In 2018, Brunei worked with China and subsequently with Malaysia, Korea and others to have cultural exchanges to enhance its image. In December 2020, the “Brunei through the eyes of foreign diplomats and their families” photographic exhibition was an important public diplomacy initiative.
The chapter on Cambodia by Chheang Vannarith is revealing. It clearly mentions that Cambodia’s Public Diplomacy wants to clarify that it is not a vassal state of China, that it is not a spoiler of ASEAN unity, and its government is not authoritarian (pp. 30-37). These were common perceptions of Cambodia, particularly when it took over the chairmanship in 2020. Cambodian public diplomacy, therefore, aims to support its foreign policy institutions, reach out to the Cambodian public, engage important stakeholders, and develop counter narratives to create a story which it was more comfortable with. It acknowledges that, despite social media efforts, the number of viewers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs social media platform is low.
Cultural diplomacy, peace diplomacy, and humanitarian assistance are the pillars of Cambodian public diplomacy. The Preah Vihar and Angkor Wat temples and their collaboration with foreign partners is an important part of public diplomacy. Similarly, the gastro-diplomacy to promote Khmer cuisine abroad is interesting. The author points out that Cambodian diplomats and their spouses are provided cooking classes before they go abroad to embassies. A cookbook is also provided; this helps Cambodian diplomats increase gastronomic outreach, which is often effective public diplomacy. The fact that Cambodia in June 2020 allowed a cruise ship Ms. Westerdam to dock in Sihanoukville after the ship was denied permission in several ports due to the pandemic, earned Cambodia goodwill. Sometimes, public diplomacy requires such firefighting action, which often brings important gains.
In the chapter on Indonesia former deputy minister Dino Patti Djalal provides a good understanding of how Indonesian presidents have reached out to the public. Times have changed and both political and public preferences have altered. It is necessary for governments to abide by public preferences to get their message across. Dino Patti Djalal details how President Jokowi in his first term was extremely popular among netizens, but a reluctant diplomat (p. 44). The first female foreign minister of Indonesia Retno Marsudi used Jokowi’s popularity to enhance the role of the foreign ministry for bringing the message of diplomacy home and for expanding his diplomatic footprint overseas.
Anoulak and Aditta Kittikhoun, authors of the chapter on Laos, refer to cultural diplomacy including tourism, entertainment and the media, which been employed to try to improve the image of Laos. Acknowledging that Laos has a limited image within ASEAN and beyond, the chapter details how the country used its presidency of ASEAN in 2016 to enhance its regional standing and to achieve a better understanding of itself (p. 49). It utilized its Lao Thiao Lao campaign (Lao visit Laos) to boost domestic tourism and showcase Lao culture. The authors point out that Laos participated in the Miss Universe pageant for the first time in 2017, winning the best national costume award in 2018, and how these brought Laos international recognition. The Luang Prabang Film Festival for Southeast Asian cinema started acquiring a greater stature. Essentially, the chapter shows how holding an ASEAN summit can be a public diplomacy game changer for a country. This is indeed an interesting perspective.
The chapter on Malaysian public diplomacy by Yeoh and Mohzani gets mired in comparing how developed countries define public diplomacy. Perhaps because, as the authors say, Malaysian public diplomacy has been inconsistent and not sustained over a period of time (p. 64). The chapter proposes that Malaysia should pursue youth diplomacy, TechPlomacy or technological diplomacy, and think-tank diplomacy based on what the United States, Denmark, or Singapore do. It acknowledges that despite being a developing country, Malaysia became a middle power mainly using traditional diplomacy. The world has changed and the chapter does not fully acknowledge a depreciation in the image of Malaysia; nor direct efforts or causes as to why that has happened. It could have been better to look at specific problems in Malaysia’s image building and disruption to make the chapter less theoretical and more meaningful.
In an honest piece, Moe Thuzar writes about Myanmar and how it has struggled through closed periods of its recent history to deal with its public image, evidently without success. She laments that since the coup of 2021, not only has Myanmar’s democratic transition been disrupted, but its soft power projection, built over the past decade, dissipated (pp. 81-82). Myanmar representatives are now barred from most ASEAN meetings, except at the functional level. Myanmar remains challenged in trying to explain why there was a coup, why the democratic parties are curtailed, and why it cannot follow its commitments given to ASEAN. The chances of any public diplomacy making a change in its image require, first of all, a change in the circumstances in the country.
For the Philippines, Julio Amador highlights that the Department of Foreign Affairs published the handbook on Philippine Public Diplomacy in 2016, which focused on the media, crisis communications, relationship with the Filipino diaspora, branding of the country, track 2 diplomacy, and the use of social media, all of which remain useful. He highlights how foreign secretary Locsin personalized the dominating force in Philippine public diplomacy through his active Twitter usage, and how President Duterte’s pronunciations on various matters attracted attention to the Philippines, whether negative or positive (pp. 89-90). The chapter does emphasize that the role of public diplomacy becomes more difficult if the situation at home was not conducive to a good image abroad, since facts can rarely be hidden.
The chapter on Thailand by Seksan Anantasirikiat is a rather weak one, perhaps due to a lack of a strategic public diplomacy vision in Thailand. It acknowledges the growing importance of public diplomacy particularly as global power rivalries increase and smaller countries have to find space for themselves.
Thai public diplomacy has focused on both domestic and foreign audiences and follows an informative communication style rather than aiming to influence foreign audiences (p. 95). Its success depends on how it manages it relationship with different partners since the changing international and domestic environment is different. Thailand, too, is burdened by a military coup, where the transition to democracy despite elections remains inconsistent. The image of the coup is difficult to overcome, however much it may promote tourism or gastro diplomacy.
Vietnam’s public image has perhaps undergone the biggest change in the last decade. Vietnam moved away from its image as a communist country and began looking more like an open country with its progressive economic policies, negotiation of free trade agreements, and its large-scale openness to tourism. Significantly there are expanding direct flights from India to Vietnam but none between India and Indonesia, where a much larger number of Indian tourists go.
As the author Vu Lam points out, Vietnam moved from a regulatory to a participatory domestic environment (p. 111). The economic vibrancy of Vietnam contributed to a larger understanding of its cultural heritage, which is buttressed by booming tourism. However, the chapter overemphasizes the cultural appeal of branding Vietnam both globally and with ASEAN countries. The author believes their culture is considered the best bridge, despite Vietnam's different political system from other ASEAN countries. Its culture-based public diplomacy has given it a good result. This is perhaps underplaying the economic success of Vietnam, which has grown much more rapidly than its other ASEAN partners. The openness to business, the entrepreneurship, accepting the challenge of international trade and the like, have given Vietnam a new image which attracts foreigners to it, as well as people from ASEAN.
Just as ASEAN is not even so are the essays in the book. The chapters on the CLMV come out better than the others. The book is an easy read and provides useful insights into how each ASEAN country looks at its public diplomacy with varying intensity and results. The challenge, often to their image, is within themselves rather than in the eyes of their partners.
Ambassador Gurjit Singh retired as the Indian ambassador to Germany. He has served as ambassador to Indonesia, ASEAN, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia and The Republic of Djibouti. Currently, he is an Honorary Professor of International Relations Studies at the Indian Institute of Technology, Indore. He holds a Bachelors’ degree in politics from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata, and a post-graduate degree in International Studies from the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. A 1980 batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service, he started his career in diplomacy with a posting in Japan and has since been posted in Sri Lanka, Kenya and Italy. Ambassador Singh has authored five books, The Abalone Factor on India-Japan business relations; The Injera and the Paratha on India and Ethiopia; Masala Bumbu and a comic book, Travels through Time, both on the India-Indonesia relationship; and Opportunity Beckons: Adding Momentum to the Indo-German Partnership. His last book is The Harambee Factor on the India-Africa partnership. He is the Consulting Editor of Rising Asia Journal and a member of the Rising Asia Foundation’s advisory board.
