EDITORIAL – The ambassador with insomnia

Give the ambassador of Japan an A for candor. Kojiro Takano worries for his safety and is concerned about so many things in this country he hasn’t had a good night’s sleep since being posted here a year ago. The ambassador bared his fears before the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines the other day, and stirred up a firestorm in his host country.

Yesterday, amid calls for his expulsion plus a note verbale from the Department of Foreign Affairs, Takano apologized. Significantly, he said sorry for his candor and the tempest he had created, but he did not retract his statements, clarifying only that he had expressed a personal opinion. Can an ambassador, addressing a very public gathering of international journalists, expect his statements to be taken as personal opinion? Takano thinks so.

The sleepless envoy was not necessarily off the mark. Filipinos will be the first to admit worrying about criminality and terrorism in this country. Official development assistance, not just from Japan but also from other countries, has been derailed by armed conflict in Mindanao. Businessmen do complain about the lack of consistency in investment policies and the lack of transparency in business transactions. As some sectors pointed out yesterday, the comments of the ambassador should serve as a wake-up call for the Arroyo administration.

These are problems, however, that are not unique to the Philippines. The situation in this country must be taken in the proper context. Metro Manila can’t be any more dangerous than New York or Washington, DC, the top targets of every world-class terrorist. Yet Takano will probably get a good night’s sleep if he is ever assigned to the United States.

An ambassador is supposed to foster good bilateral relations. A diplomat’s concerns can be expressed through proper channels. If Takano can say such things in public in his host country, think of what he is reporting to the home office. Perhaps the DFA should send him some melatonin or Prozac, or else send him back to Japan, where he may be cured of his insomnia.