The Foreign Service Journal, September 2013

74 SEPTEMBER 2013 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL AFSA NEWS AFSA CONSTRUCT I VE D I SSENT AWARDS : THE WI L L I AM R . R I VK I N AWARD Before Theodore Lyng arrived in Jakarta, the embassy’s previous attempts to engage Muslim civil society, though well-intentioned, system- atically left out conservative Muslim leaders. Drawing on his lessons learned during his previous assignments in Indonesia, as well as excel- lent language skills, Mr. Lyng quickly identified this dynamic as something that needed to be changed. PROMOT I NG D I ALOGUE He effectively and per- suasively pointed out that interfaith dialogues, without the participation of conserva- tive Muslim leaders, would only result in the United States preaching to the choir. Promoting a dialogue of tolerance to liberal and moderate Muslim groups, he argued, would not change the minds of the people we most wanted to influence; more- over, the embassy would, in effect, be taking sides in an internal, ideological debate among Indonesia’s Muslims. Interfaith dialogue conducted under such circumstances would limit, not expand, the number of groups with which the embassy could interact, the opposite of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clin- ton’s goal to create deeper and broader relationships with civil society through faith-based outreach. ENGAG I NG COMMUN I T I ES “As a religious person myself, I thought it was important to engage reli- gious communities,” Ted comments. “In relatively few countries do devout religious communities worship largely peacefully side-by-side, with mutual respect and tolerance. I am proud to be a citizen of one such country who serves in another.” Through countless e-mails, meetings and o cial communications with the department, Mr. Lyng won broad U.S. government sup- port for building bridges to non-traditional and conser- vative Muslim interlocutors. For him, every embassy reception, lunch, and dinner was an opportunity to get a conservative Muslim on the guest list, thereby extending our reach to that community. ONE AT A T IME Every call for nomi- nees for an International Visitors Leadership Program exchange was another oppor- tunity to send a conservative Muslim activist to the United States—and perhaps change his or her views a little. Coun- tering the radical narrative directly, one Indonesian at a time if necessary, was Mr. Lyng’s strategy. As a result of Ted’s tire- less efforts to remind and persuade the State Depart- ment’s leadership that there is a need to engage with all groups within Muslim civil society, the embassy has greatly enhanced the breadth and depth of its ties in the world’s largest Muslim- majority nation. CREAT I NG L I NKAGES Such linkages are keys to developing meaningful people-to-people bonds between the United States and Indonesia, helping to bring about the two-way understanding that breaks down barriers. Mr. Lyng’s efforts to change embassy policy will have long-lasting effects on popular attitudes. Ted is quick to credit the support of the entire Jakarta political section “as crucial to my success.” When asked what the award means to him, he responded, “I appreciate all the awards I have received, but I treasure only two: the Rivkin Award that I have just won and a simple letter of apprecia- tion I received for my work supporting peace in Aceh between 2000 and 2003.” n Ted Lyng’s Persistence Wins Broad Government Support Ted Lyng (left) receives the William R. Rivkin Award from the Hon. Robert S. Rivkin for his courage, creativity and persuasion skills in convincing others of the need for a change in policy. FOR A MID-LEVEL FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICER Profiles of award winners compiled by Donna Ayerst. ALLAWARDSCEREMONYPHOTOSBYDONNAAYERST