In conversation with ZE Karel Hartogh, ambassador

About a month ago we already introduced the new Dutch ambassador in Bangkok. HE Karel Hartogh, with a photograph, with you.

The accompanying text read: 'Mr. Karel Hartogh has already had a 'long life' at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We do not (yet) know his age, but we do know that he graduated in International Law in Leiden in 1988.

He was the private secretary of the Minister for 5 years and then worked in the Asia and Oceania department, first as deputy director, but from 2009 he is Director of that department.

Earlier this year, he was appointed Temporary Chargé d'Affaires in Islamabad after the ambassador there was seriously injured in a helicopter crash.  

Mr. Hartogh will of course know the region like no other from his position in The Hague, but Bangkok is his first foreign base as ambassador.”

Appointment

I found that rather brief and could only draw from his profile on Linkedin and his own Facebook page. I sent him a message that I would like to speak to him to get some more details about him and his work for the readers of Thailandblog. Frankly, I was not too confident that a conversation would take place because an ambassador is an authority, a dignitary who cannot be approached just like that.

But lo and behold, Mr. Hartogh rather quickly messaged, "I am very willing to make an appointment with you." I didn't waste any time on that and proposed two dates to him, whereby after a few e-mails we "chatted" on Wednesday, August 12. It may have been Queens Birthday and Mother's Day, a national holiday in Thailand, but "he was at the office anyway so very welcome!"

It turned out to be an extremely good choice. When I go to Bangkok I usually use the direct bus connection Pattaya-Bangkok to Ekamai and then continue with the Skytrain. Also that Wednesday and because there was little traffic – have you ever seen Sukhumvit in Bangkok without traffic jams? – I was early. Better too early than too late, right? I reported to the gate on time, where it turned out that I was the only visitor that day.

Reception

I walked with a security man through the garden to the embassy building and was met at the door by the ambassador himself. No receptionist or secretary to keep me waiting for a while, the ambassador was the only member of staff present. We shook hands and I noticed that as the new ambassador he was already working very energetically: just arrived and the embassy building and residence were already under construction for renovation. He laughed and said he had nothing to do with that, it was some renovation and maintenance work that had been decided before his arrival.

ADO Den Haag

There was something else that proved so suitable for the appointment that Wednesday. As a resident of The Hague, Mr. Hartogh is of course a fan of ADO Den Haag, who played against PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday evening and drew after that miraculous goal by the keeper. He had seen the game, unfortunately not (yet) that conscious goal. After 88 minutes he resigned himself to another defeat for his club, it was now late at night and he went to bed. No doubt he later watched the scoring moment and the joy of the ADO supporters in the stadium. In any case, it was a nice introduction to the conversation for me.

Private

Karel Hartogh is 58 years old. Although born in France because his father worked there at the time, he moved to The Hague with his parents at the age of 3. He went to secondary school there and then went on to study law in Leiden and Amsterdam.

He has been married for a long time to Maddy Smeets, whom I have not met. There is a photo on his Facebook page in which his lovely wife is also posing. Together they have one daughter who is now studying in Utrecht. Mrs. Smeets is a gynecologist and whether she can do something in her field in Thailand has yet to be determined.

Both are art lovers. They modestly collected paintings and other art objects and are also interested in other forms of culture, such as dance and music. This means that the couple in Thailand with its rich culture is of course well catered for. Classical dance and music? Yes, but I'm going to give him some more links to popular Thai music groups.

Career

As mentioned earlier, Karel Hartogh has worked "all his life" at Foreign Affairs and has also been seconded to Economic Affairs for 9 years. One could call him a career diplomat. Starting as a policy officer for Europe, he held various positions until he became Private Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2001. After that he became more specialized on Asia/Oceania. After many years as director of that specific department at the ministry, it was time for an ambassadorial post. He was offered a number of (unnamed) posts. In the end he chose Thailand, for which he had built up a certain love over the years.

Ambassador

So it's his first ambassadorial post and I asked him if it was also his last before retiring like his predecessor. His appointment could then be seen as a kind of bonus for long-term loyal service. I presented him with statements by two foreign ministers: Minister Frans Timmermans, the predecessor of the current minister, thought that Foreign Affairs should be conducted more professionally and that diplomacy is a profession.

Another former minister, Uri Rosenthal, was not so fond of the foreign service. He thought it was just a “rustic pastime”. That has earned him quite a bit of criticism from the ministry. Karel Hartogh also disagrees with the latter. He replied that the time of handing out nice ambassador jobs is long gone. He assured me that he will certainly not limit himself to all kinds of ceremonies such as shaking hands, attending receptions and attending large dinner parties. Opposite me sat a combative man from whom we can expect many “beautiful things”.

Arthur Doctors van Leeuwen

In this context I should mention the Docters van Leeuwen committee, which was commissioned to examine how the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should function more professionally than before. What changes should take place, taking into account necessary cutbacks. There was an interim report that caused quite a stir and the final report also showed quite a few surprises for the outsider.

The report is not an easy read for the uninitiated, but I get an important point out of it. In the report, “diplomacy” is referred to as a profession that, as such, must also be practiced professionally. Karel Hartogh was pleased with this finding because people sometimes think that “an ambassador just does whatever”. However, that statement alone is not enough. The profession of diplomacy must also be actively promoted and the activities of embassies must also be more open and better explained to the public. Of course there remains the “silent diplomacy”, but in general the public must understand what is happening at the Foreign Office and therefore also at embassies.

Thailand

Karel Hartogh knows Thailand very well from his previous positions. Although he has not been to all major cities, he has been to all parts of the country. "Oh yeah? Have you also visited Patpong in Bangkok and Walking Street in Pattaya? He's been to Patpong once a long, long time ago. That was and is – certainly as an ambassador – not worth repeating. He also had to admit that he had never been to Pattaya, including Walking Street. I will try to get him there again in the future!

According to the ambassador, Thailand is an important country for the Netherlands. The trade relationship is good. But on that point he also thought that there are still many opportunities for the Dutch business community.

The Dutch community in Thailand

The ambassador is aware of the estimate that approximately 10.000 Dutch people live in Thailand or at least stay for a long time. He also knows that there are Dutch associations in Bangkok, Pattaya and Hua Hin/Cha-am. He applauds this and plans to attend a meeting of these associations in the not too distant future. At set times, as is already happening, (cultural) events will be organized at the embassy – in the garden or in the residence – to which compatriots are most welcome.

Work at the embassy

The embassy offers all kinds of services that are described in detail on the website. Mr. Hartogh is busy familiarizing himself with various departments of the embassy and the Consular Affairs department was not left out. On the contrary, he has already spent many moments there and helped solve a problem where necessary. I tried to give him some insight about the "types" of Dutch people in Thailand, but he didn't want to hear about it. For him and the embassy staff, every Dutch person is equal to him and everyone can therefore count on equal treatment, as long as one also treats consular embassy employees with respect.

Health insurance

I did get the opportunity to outline the major problem of health insurance for Dutch people in Thailand. Dutch people who deregister in the Netherlands are banned from health insurance and must then opt for a different solution, with all the problems and high costs that entails.

The ambassador did not know the details of the problem and although I realize that he will not be able to add Thailand to the list of treaty countries (in the short term), he agreed to look into this matter. Whether or not anything positive will come of this is yet to be determined.

Finally,

Karel Hartogh is a friendly man and open-minded. He wants to be open to anyone who asks for his advice and support and is prepared to roll up his sleeves, but warns that even in this position he cannot break iron with his hands. At least not always, he joked. He also thinks that his employees in what he calls a “flat organization” should adopt the same attitude.

Dutch Embassy Bangkok

In that context, he has already invited me to talk to other officials at the embassy, ​​in particular the new Chief of Consular Affairs, Jef Haenen, and the First Secretary of Economic Affairs, Berhard Kelkes. We will for sure! I have invited Mr. Hartogh to use Thailandblog to tell us about his adventures as ambassador. I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot more from him.

After this interesting conversation of more than two hours we said goodbye to each other, I wished him luck and dived back into Bangkok, sweltering with heat (32º C.), on the way to cooler Pattaya. Gringo August 14, 2015