Prof. Dr. Hasjim Djalal, MA was born in Bukitting on 25 February 1934. A senior diplomat throughout the Old Order, New Order and Reform eras, he began his career after obtaining a BA from the Diplomatic Academy in Jakarta in 1956. He continued his studies in International Political Science at the University of Virginia, United States, in 1959. Hasyim obtained a PhD in International Maritime Law from the University of Virginia, United States, in 1961 with a dissertation entitled “The Limits of Territorial Waters in International Law”. He also completed his education at the National Defence College (Lemhanas), KRA IV, Jakarta in 1971.
Hasyim is known as a leading figure in international maritime law. He is credited with playing a major role in securing international recognition of Indonesia as an archipelagic state.
As a diplomat, Hasyim had considerable experience on the international stage. He served as Indonesia’s Representative to UNTEA (United Nations Temporary Executive Administration) in West Irian from 1962 to 1963. Hasyim held a number of strategic posts representing Indonesia abroad. These included Second Secretary at the Indonesian Embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, from 1964 to 1966; First Secretary at the Indonesian Embassy in Guinea, West Africa, 1966–1969; Minister-Counsellor and subsequently Minister at the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore, 1972–1976; Minister/Deputy Head of Mission at the Indonesian Embassy in Washington, 1979–1981; and Ambassador/Deputy Permanent Representative of Indonesia to the UN, New York, 1981–1983; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary (AEP) of the Republic of Indonesia to Canada, 1983–1985; and AEP of the Republic of Indonesia to Germany, 1990–1993.
Hasyim also served as Indonesia’s Itinerant Ambassador for Maritime and Oceanic Legal Affairs, 1994–2000. He was frequently appointed as the Indonesian Government’s Special Envoy to dozens of countries worldwide on various foreign policy issues, particularly those relating to East Timor and maritime and oceanic law.
Hasyim was a member, and later Deputy Head, of the Indonesian Delegation to the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (1973–1982) and its Preparatory Committee (1969–1973). He also served as Chair of Committee I of the UN Preparatory Committee for the establishment of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), 1984–1994; First President of the International Seabed Authority, Kingston, Jamaica, 1995–1996; and on several occasions chaired the Group of Developing Countries and the Asian Group in the field of the law of the sea.
Since 1997, Hasyim has been a Member/Vice-Chair of the ISBA Council. He also served as Indonesia’s Representative to the International Seabed Authority, Kingston, Jamaica, 1994–2012; Vice-Chair of the ISBA Council, and Chair of the ISBA Finance Committee, 2003–2012; Initiator and Convenor of the Workshops on Managing Potential Conflict in the South China Sea, 1989–present; and Indonesia’s Representative to the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC), specifically in the academic sector (IOR-AG), Mauritius, 1997–2005.
Hasyim has been a full member of AIPI since 2011, specialising in international maritime law. Domestically, Hasyim has had a career spanning from 1957 to the present day, working in various departments related to international affairs and Indonesian maritime law. He is currently a member of Dekin (the Indonesian Maritime Council). Hasyim has also been a Professor of Law/International Relations at Padjadjaran University since 1995 and a member of the Indonesian Maritime Council (DMI) since 1999.
Hasyim has written numerous academic articles and journal pieces, and has delivered various lectures and public talks, both domestically and abroad, on maritime affairs and regional and international political issues. Some of these have been compiled and published in books, including:
• Indonesia’s Struggle in the Field of the Law of the Sea, 1979.
• Indonesia and the Law of the Sea, 1995.
• Indonesia’s Foreign Policy Facing the 21st Century, 1997.
• Preventive Diplomacy in South-East Asia: Lessons Learned, 2003.
• Seeking Lasting Peace in Aceh, 2006.
• From Archipelagic State to Maritime State, 2009.
For his contributions to Indonesia, Hasyim received a number of awards. These include the First Class Maheswara Medal from LEMHANAS (2003) and the Tamtama Dharma Negara Medal, LEMHANAS (2006).